New Beginnings
by WingBladeWeaver1357
Summary: Hikari is a free-spirited girl who, just like her friends, wished to see the outside world before she turned 80. However, the day before they set sail, she got more than she hoped for. Now alone and lost, she set her mind straight to one thing only...to find her brother and her friends. But things doesn't always go as planned now do they? AU. OC. Gen. Sequel: Forget Me Not
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hey guys! This is a complete remake of Sora no Hikari! I just thought that the previous story really needs a remake so I decided to make one. This story is based on KH1, but we're going to be seeing it from a different perspective. The plot is… well not like the KH1 script. I will only put big events in the story. Other than that, it's completely new.

I'll keep the previous stories because well… I kind of like them… If you guys want to check it out, they are called Sora no Hikari. But I warn you guys, it's a 100% different.

Previously this story is about Xikari, a Nobody of Kairi that has the heart of Ven (Yikes… I know right?) But don't worry, that's all going to change. This story is about an OC, yes, but I promise you guys she's not a Nobody or a Princess of Heart.

I realized that I'm in the danger zone because my OC is named Hikari and she's the little sister of Sora. But meh… I could probably hit it off.

So enough of me talking and let's get on with the story!

Summary:  
They expected to see the outside world when they made that raft. They just didn't expect seeing it without each other. Traveling to new worlds, magic and fighting all kinds of evil villains. All the while looking for friends and families? This is just the beginning.

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix

* * *

Chapter 1: the day when it all happens

"—ikari—Hikari!"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm listening. I'm listening." The brunette sleepily replied, rolling on her side to get a better position. A second or two passed. It was complete silence. The only sound that could be heard were the sound of waves gently splashing against the shore. The brunette went back to slumber at the calming sounds. "Ack—?! Selphie! Seriously! What the heck?!" she suddenly yelled, shooting up to a sitting position.

Selphie giggled. "What? You're the one who fell asleep." She twirled the white feather innocently between her fingers. At the sight of her best friend rubbing her ears intensely to get rid of the tickling sensation made her giggle even more. "You should've seen the look on your face though. It was hilarious!" she laughed.

Hikari glared, giving a pout. "What's so important that you have to tickle my ear with a feather?" she crossed her arms, blowing a strand of hair from her eyes.

The green eyed girl shrugged. "You suddenly fell asleep when I was telling a story about a boy who shares the Paopu fruit with the girl he loves." She sighed dreamily, intertwining her fingers together as she stares at the tree by the small island.

The other brunette groaned. "Selphie. You told me this story like a bazillion times already. I know how it ends. It's like the boy eats the fruit with the girl and yada, yada, yada, live happily ever after. The end." She summarized as she laid back down on the warm sand. She crossed her hands behind her head, using them as a pillow. Her blue eyes stared at the leaves above her.

Selphie rolled her eyes, a small smile one her lips. "Oh Hikari… it's totally more than that." She said. There was a brief silence before she decided to change the topic. "Are you really serious about going out to the sea?" she asked.

Hikari hummed, closing her eyes. "Yeah! It was mainly Riku's idea after asking about Kairi's home, but other than searching for Kairi's home… I also want to know what's going on out there." she answered.

Selphie smiled. She always wondered why her friend was so curious about _'the outside world'_. "So how's the raft coming along?" she asked again.

"It's coming out nicely! We just need a few things and we're good!" Hikari said.

Selphie blinked. "But shouldn't you be working on it right now?"

The brunette suddenly shot up from her position. She turned to face Selphie and gave her a somewhat sheepish look. "Uh…. I'm on break?" she nervously said, raising her shoulders.

"Hah! Hikari and the word work together? Get real!" A hand pushed her head down in a playful manner. She let out a small grunt when the person didn't let go. She glared at him, a frown on her lips. The boy in return grinned. "Selphie, perhaps you don't know all that about Hikari." He tsk-ed.

Selphie raised an eyebrow and placed her hands on her hips. "Oh? What don't I know about Hikari? We've been besties since we were like three." she said and she showed the boy her hand. "I know that she likes sleeping, chewing pencils, picking her nose when no one's looking, a brother complex—," she listed, raising a finger each time she pointed something out.

"HEY! I admit everything, but I do NOT have a brother complex!" Hikari shouted, her face turning red from embarrassment.

Tidus and Wakka burst out laughing. "We know all of that! It's an open secret!" Selphie joined the two, leaving the brunette sulking.

"Argh! You guys are impossible!" Hikari groaned and a small smile appeared. They always tease each other like this. She really couldn't stay mad at her friends. She averted her eyes to the two boys. "What are you two here anyway? I thought you two were _'too busy playing blitz ball'_ to talk to us." She quoted.

Wakka tossed the ball up and caught it with one hand. "We were, but Riku saw us and asked if we've seen you or not."

"So we told him _yes_ and he told us to tell you that he wants you to meet him at the raft you guys are building." Tidus continued, a smirk on his lips when he saw Hikari pulled a look. "You are in sooo much trouble!" he sniggered, pointing his finger at her.

Hikari gave him another look. "Oh ha ha… real mature, Tidus." She gave a sarcastic laugh. She stood up and patted the sand off her clothes. She took Selphie's hand and helped her up to her feet. "Well, I'm off! I'm gonna see Riku. See you guys later!" she said her goodbyes, running towards where the raft is.

"Just don't forget to bring me souvenirs!" Selphie joked.

"You got it!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"C'mon Kairi, Riku! I'm telling the truth! There was this big thing attacking me!"

Kairi giggled, "Are you still dreaming, Sora?" she asked as she helped Riku attach the sail.

Sora shook his head. "I'm not! I wide awake! It was just so bizarre…" he mumbled the last part, looking at his palm.

"Maybe you were just dreaming because of that movie you watched last night." Riku said, glancing over to Sora.

"That has nothing to do with it." Sora huffed, crossing his arms. He took the wooden sword beside him and swung it around. His blue eyes stared at the wood. He raised the wooden sword to the sky, still staring at it.

Riku stared at how Sora was staring at the sword and smirked. "So you wanna have a little spar?" he grabbed his own wooden sword and jumped off the raft, leaving a baffled Sora behind. He walked a few feet before going down to his signature fighting stance. "C'mon Sora, I'm waiting." He taunted.

Sora immediately jumped to his feet and stood in his own fighting stance. "You're on, Riku!" he grinned, determined to win the fight. "I got a feeling that I'll win today so be sure to watch! Okay, Kairi?"

Kairi shook her head with a small smile. "Sure, sure…"

Sora quickly charged at Riku and the silver-haired teen blocked the attack. Sora stepped back and swung his wooden sword, charging continuously. He wasn't going to give Riku a chance to fight back. One little slip and it might be Riku the one attacking him non-stop. The two wooden swords clashed in a loud thud, forming an X.

"Giving up already, Riku?" Sora grinned.

Riku scoffed. "Really?" he put some force and pushed Sora back, surprising him. The silver-haired teen quickly turned the tables. He quickly encountered Sora's previous attacks with his fast ones. Sora was taken aback, he tried blocking Riku's attacks the best he can, but a hit to Sora's shoulder made him retreat back, huffing and puffing tiredly. "What's wrong? Giving up already, Sora?" Riku smirked, placing his sword over his shoulder.

The brunette frowned. "Quiet you! Look which one of us is winning!" he pointed his sword at Riku.

Riku laughed. "Gee, I wonder?"

"Alright, alright, I think that's enough sparring for one day." Kairi stood between the two and smiled. "We should really continue fixing up the raft." She looked at the other direction when she heard someone calling. "Speaking of the raft…" she trailed off.

"Hey!" as if on cue, someone shouted. The three friends looked up and saw the youngest of the group running towards them. Sora grinned and Kairi smiled at the girl. Riku on the other hand, crossed his arms as he tried to look mad. He gave the famous _'you're late'_ look. She panted and placed her hands on her knees for support. "I know I'm late, but I have a good reason this time!"

Riku raised an eyebrow. "Oh? We want to hear it." He said.

"There was this baby cat that was just looking for his mommy and I just had to look for it and—," Hikari stopped when she saw Riku's black glove really close to her face.

"Stop. We don't want to hear your lame excuses." Riku crossed his arms. "Tidus told me that you were with Selphie."

Hikari laughed sheepishly. "Hehehe I lost track of time? Well it's true! I can't tell when the one hour break is over without a watch." She huffed childishly.

"Ooooh! I like that one better than your lame cat excuse." Sora grinned, placing his arm over her shoulders.

Riku rolled his eyes. "Like brother, like sister… I guess." He ruffled Hikari's hair and turned around. "By the way, did you get the coconuts?" he asked and was met with silence. "You forgot, didn't you?" he sighed heavily.

Hikari laugh sheepishly. "Hehehe ups? But don't worry! I'll go get it right now!" she said and ran towards the nearest coconut tree.

"I'll come with you." Kairi said, following the young brunette. When she reached the coconut tree she saw Hikari trying to climb up the tree. "What are you doing?" she asked, looking up.

The brunette grunted as she tried to hold her position. "Getting… coconuts!" she was halfway up when she couldn't hold on any longer. Slowly, she slid back down and released her hold of the bark, laying sprawled on her back. "Ugh…" she groaned.

"You know, you could just shoot them with your slingshot, right?" Kairi pointed out, helping Hikari stand back on her feet.

"Good idea!" Hikari exclaimed, reaching into her pocket. She grabbed the self-made slingshot both Sora and Riku made her when they were little. She took a marble and placed it in the center of the pouch. "Step back, Kairi. I'm gonna shoot!" she told as she aimed for the coconut.

One by one, the coconuts fell to the ground. "Boom! Four coconuts ready to serve!" Hikari twirled the slingshot, a smug grin across her lips. Kairi shook her head and both girls went to collect the coconuts. One suddenly fell from the tree, almost hitting Hikari's foot. "Uh… make that five?" she grinned as she picked up the marbles she used as ammos.

Kairi giggled. "Can you believe it, Hikari? Tomorrow… we're going to set sail to the outside world!" she said excitedly, carrying some of the coconuts.

"I know right? It's going to be real fun! I just know it." Hikari agreed and carried the rest of the coconuts. "Maybe we'll find your home first!" she continued.

Kairi smiled. "Maybe… but whatever happens we'll always be together, alright?" She turned to face the younger girl. Even though she was still smiling, her eyes showed something else.

Hikari stared at Kairi's worried look. "Kairi is something—,"

"Well! We should hurry and finish up! After all, we don't want to wake up late tomorrow!" Kairi suddenly exclaimed, cheerful again all of the sudden.

The brunette was unconvinced, but nodded anyway.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Hey, Hikari, do you think I should bring an umbrella?" Sora asked as he held the beach umbrella.

Hikari thought for a moment before nodding. "Eh… I think we should! Don't wanna get sunburn, right?" she said.

"Good point."

The two brunettes were in Sora's bedroom deciding what they should bring tomorrow. So far, they agreed on almost everything. Starting from useful things they might need for the trip to unnecessary items like toys.

"Would it be a good idea to bring snacks? I know we have coconuts and mushrooms, but…" Hikari trailed off, expressing that she dislikes the idea of eating the same food every day.

Sora brightened up at the idea. "That a good idea! We should bring some of Mom's cookies! Riku and Kairi would love them!" he exclaimed.

"Hikari! Can you come here for a moment?"

The two siblings looked at the door when their mother called.

"Just in time. Be right back, bro." Hikari said to Sora. She jumped out from Sora's bed and headed towards the door. "Coming mom!" she shouted.

"Can you also bring sodas too?" Sora shouted from his room.

"Sure!" Hikari yelled back, walking backwards into the kitchen. Her blue eyes scanned the whole room. Her father was lounging by the table, reading a book. Her mother was in the kitchen, preparing dinner for four. "Hey Mom, what'cha need?" she asked as she went to one of the high cabinets.

"Are you two still preparing for tomorrow's trip?" Her mother questioned, glancing back at her daughter.

Hikari took out the cookies from the jar and placed them inside the food zip bag. "Yeah! We need some more snacks though…" she said.

"Leave some for your dad please." Her father said from the table, staring at the amount of cookies Hikari was putting inside the zip bag. Hikari gave him a grin before leaving half of the cookie jar behind. "Thank you." He smiled.

Her mother rolled her eyes. "If you're going to bring some snack, why don't you bring something healthy? Like fruits or vegetables?" she suggested.

"Got it covered, mom. We have coconuts and mushrooms." Hikari went to the fridge and took out four sodas.

"Mushrooms are not vegetables." Her father corrected.

"They are too, dad. They grow from the ground." Hikari retorted. She turned to her mother. "Is there something you need, mom? You did call me." She placed all of the items on the island, waiting for her mother to talk.

"Oh yes, the trash hasn't been taken out." At the mention of trash, Hikari slumped down to the island. "You forgot didn't you?" her mother crossed her arms and gave her a look.

"Oh c'mon, mom! It's not like Sora doesn't forgets it either!" Hikari argued. She stared at the trash can before looking back at her mother. "Besides, can I just wait until after dinner? You're going to throw out some more anyway." She said, referring to the potato skins.

Her mother kept on giving her the look. "Do it now, young lady."

"Do as your mom says, Hikari." Her father sided.

Hikari groaned before taking the trash out. "Fine… you just want me to leave the cookies and sodas behind, huh dad?" she pointed an accusing finger at her father as he just gave an innocent shrug. "I'll be back soon and don't touch my snacks, dad!" She gave him a look before exiting the house through the back door.

As soon as she went out the cold breeze hit her skin, sending shivers down her spine. The night was colder than usual, she noted. She dragged the bag of garbage to the spot where the garbage man always picks it up in the mornings.

"Why do I have to take out the trash now? I can just take it out after dinner or tomorrow…" Hikari mumbled under her breath, clearly annoyed at the fact that she has to take out the trash. "Arghhh it's too cold to think!" she groaned as she dumped the garbage near the lamppost.

The sound of thunder rumbling and lightning flashing broke her from her rant. She looked up, facing the small island. Dark storm clouds were forming above the small island and lightning kept on flashing.

"A storm? I thought the weatherman said tonight's going to be a clear night." Hikari said to herself. Her blue eyes saw a blur of red. "Sora!" she shouted, getting his attention.

"Hikari!" Sora stopped running and waited for Hikari to catch up. "There's a storm coming and the raft can't be washed away!" he said frantically.

"Okay! Just let me tell mom we're going to be late for dinner. I'll meet you there." Hikari said and ran back to the house.

"Wait! How will you get there?" the two stopped running.

"I can borrow Selphie's boat!"

"Okay! Meet you there!" the two ran towards separate directions.

Hikari slammed the backdoor open, alerting both of her parents. "Hey mom, we're going to check on the raft! There's a storm coming and we can't let it—,"

Suddenly, the ground shook violently, shaking everything. Her mother and father quickly ducked down beneath the table as Hikari held onto the doorframe to keep herself from falling. The ground continued to shook for a few more seconds before it completely stops. The brunette stood still, glancing around to inspect the damage. She looked outside and her eyes widened. There was a dark ball up in the sky.

"Are you alright, honey?" Her father helped her mother up.

"Was that an earthquake?" Her mother asked, a concerned look across her face.

Her father nodded. "We have to get out… there could be an aftershock…" he glanced over to Hikari. "Let's go Hikari—What the!" he paused when a dark portal suddenly appeared on the floor.

Hikari looked back to her parents and her eyes widened in fear. Black ant-like creatures emerged from the ground, staring at everything with its beady yellow eyes. They looked…unhuman. She took a step back when more black creatures appeared. They were making their way towards her parents. She panicked as she searched around the kitchen, looking for something to get their attention.

"H-HEY! You!" Hikari shouted. She threw a bottle of soda at one of the creatures' head, gaining its' attention. It turned its' attention to her. Her shoulders tensed when its' eyes made eye contact with her. "Yeah! I'm the one who threw that! Me! You want to mess with someone, it's gonna be me. Leave my parents out of it, got it?" she nervously said, backing away slowly.

She stepped aside just in time when one of the creatures lunged at her.

"Hikari!" both her parents shouted in worry.

"Don't worry! Run!" Hikari shouted, moving around the island to avoid the creatures. She grabbed her mother's hand, encouraging her to move. They ran to the backdoor and Hikari quickly opened it. "Whoa!" she yelped when something pulled her up.

The dark ball she saw earlier has turned to a vortex. It was trying to suck everything in, almost like a tornado.

"Hikari! Just hang on, okay?!" Her mother told her, holding onto her hand tightly as the vortex tried to suck her daughter in.

Hikari gritted her teeth as she tried to hang on. "I—I can't!" her hand slipped from her mother's grasp, sending her into the vortex.

"Hikari!"

Her name was the last thing she heard when darkness swallowed her vision.

* * *

A/N: That is the end of chapter one. I do hope you guys like it and find it interesting.

Tell me what you guys think about it!

Fact: I used to spell Xehanort's name Xehanork, with a k XD And it sounds way weird.

R&R please!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: thank you guys so much! I just love you guys! Please enjoy this second chapter!

Allspark Princess: thank you so much!

guest: hahaha the bro-sis bond is inseparable.

Gry20: yup she is ;)

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix

* * *

Chapter 2: Traverse Town

"Ugh…"

Hikari stirred. She slowly opened her eyes and sat up. Everything was a blur. She rubbed her eyes, waiting for them to adjust. Her eyes suddenly widened when she realized she was in a whole new environment. The last time she checked, she was back in Destiny Islands.

"Is this… really another world?" She pondered as she stood up. She quickly ran out of the alley and her jaw dropped open in awe. She never knew that the outside world was so bright and old fashioned. Her eyes scanned over the area. Bright signs were hung above the stores' doors. There weren't many people walking around, but she still got the 'new world' vibe. "Am I dreaming?" she gave a small smile.

The brunette suddenly slapped herself. "Ouch! Ow! Bad idea… This is so not a dream." she rubbed her right cheek, trying to ease out the stinging pain. She walked down the stairway while staring at her surroundings with awe. She glanced up the eternal night sky, the stars shining brightly above the quaint and calm town. "It… reminds me so much of Destiny Islands' night sky…" she smiled at the memory.

A sudden realization hit her. "Wait! Mom and Dad!" she frantically glanced around, looking for her parents. She ran towards the nearest person. "Excuse me! Have you seen my parents?" she questioned.

"Sorry no." The man simply brushed her off and continued to walk.

Hikari gave the man a look before moving on to look for another person.

"Watch where you're going, kupo!" a disembodied voice shouted. Hikari glanced around confusedly before her eyes then moved down to spot a flying mystical creature. It was a small white creature with purple bat wings and an antenna with a big red pom-pom. "Kids these days, kupo!" it huffed.

Hikari's blue eyes blinked owlishly at the sight of the creature. "Uh… sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going…"

"You better be, kupo!" the creature flew away.

When the creature was out of earshot, Hikari sighed. "Whoa… that was weird…" she shook her head and blinked a few times, trying to determine whether the creature was real or not. She slowly walked away, looking for another person. She decided to approach a woman near an open café. "Hi, uh… pardon? Have you seen my parents? My mom and dad are this high… and my brother is about this high. They look like me." She described.

The woman tilted her head in confused, a small smile was seen on her lips. "You have to be a lot more descriptive. There are lots of people here with that height." She said.

"Oh… Uh… My brother, he has brown hair just like me, but spikier of course!" Hikari tried again.

The woman stared at her for a moment. "You must be new, huh?" she gave her a sympathetic look.

"New? What do you mean?" Hikari questioned.

"You're here, right? This is Traverse Town, survivors from the worlds lost to the Heartless find their way here after their world is destroyed… just like yours' too." The woman explained.

Hikari tried to process the information. "But… if that's true then my family is also here…right?" she asked, her eyes showing hope that she might hear something good.

The woman sighed sadly. "I don't actually know…" she admitted, making Hikari look dejected. "But this is a big place, they might be somewhere in the second or third district." She said, trying to lift the girl's spirits up.

Just like what the woman hoped, Hikari's blue eyes brightened. "Really?! Where can I find this second and third district?" she asked eagerly.

The woman smiled. "Just follow the stairs if you want to go to the second district." She pointed to the way up the stairway. "The third district can be accessed from the second one. Just go down and head to the first alley you come across. You can also access the third district through that door over there." She pointed to the opposite direction of the café.

Hikari glanced over her shoulder and found a large door with a large neon sign that says 'Third District'. She nodded in understanding.

"Do you want me to accompany you?" The nice woman offered, placing her hands on her knees to lean down to match Hikari's eye level.

The brunette shook her head and the woman gave a confused look. "No thanks, I don't want to make you follow me all the time. It's gonna take some time… I bet you have other things to do too other than babysitting me, right?" she laughed.

The woman let out a small sigh and smiled. "Do you have something to protect yourself?" she asked.

Hikari patted her pockets and pulled out her slingshot, "Does this count?" she asked, showing the woman her wooden slingshot.

The woman giggled, "As long as you don't jump into combat and stay low, you'll be fine." She leaned back, standing on her full height. Her expression suddenly changed, trying to show concern to the girl. "You have to be careful though… There are Heartless over there. If there are any problems, come back to the first district. It's the safest of all." The woman warned and instructed.

The brunette grinned. "I'll keep that in mind." She turned to face the stairs, staring at the store at the top. "Thanks a lot, Miss!" she thanked before running off, passing a man heading to the opposite direction from her.

The man stared at Hikari's back as she ran up the stairs and disappeared after turning to a corner. "Do you know her, Aerith?" he asked.

Aerith shook her head. "No… I think she just came here today."

The man crossed his arms. "So another world has fallen…" he looked solemn as he mumbled under his breath.

Aerith nodded her head, frowning a little. "A lot of worlds disappeared during the past few days… Do you think that it has something to do with what King Mickey has told us, Leon?" she turned to face the scarred man.

Leon sighed, looking up to the stars. "The Darkness is spreading abnormally. There's nothing we can do except to wait for the Key to arrive."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari searched through the whole district, looking high and low. She even entered shops and houses trying to look for her family. She heeds the woman's warnings of the things called the Heartless. Apparently, those black creatures that invaded her island is the Heartless. She came across them a few times while exploring the second district and avoided them completely.

"Scary…" She mumbled from her hiding spot when a large ball-like Heartless passed by. The blue eyed girl quickly ran towards the first alley she passed, going around the corner. She stood there for a moment, staring at the neon sign that says 'Third District' in bright yellow colors. "This is it… the Third District." She took a deep breath before opening the doors.

Hikari looked around the area. "It's small compared to the other two…" she went down the stairs and scanned the area for any Heartless. She sighed in relieve when there were none.

She circled the whole district, multiple times, just like what she did while she was searching at the other two. After making sure that the area was clear, she walked towards the fountain.

The brunette sat down on the fountain, sighing heavily. "Man… this is harder than I thought…" she groaned and propped her head up on one elbow. "I wonder where you guys are now…" she looked up to the starry sky, frowning.

She pulled out the slingshot from her pocket and stared at it, smiling bitterly.

Her thoughts wondered to where her parents are… her friends… her brother.

Tears slid down her cheeks and fall down to her slingshot, staining it with droplets of tears.

"Mom…dad… Sora… I hope you guys are okay…" her voice was breaking as she sobbed quietly.

It was really quiet. The only thing that could be heard were the sound of her muffled cries and the flow of water coming from the fountain behind her.

So imagine her surprise when she heard a voice and a hand on top of her head.

"Oh you poor dear…"

"What—!" Startled, Hikari jumped up and turned around to face the person who was sitting on the fountain beside her. "Whoa!" She tripped over her own foot and fell flat on her bottom.

The person giggled at Hikari's reaction. "You need not to raise your guard around me, child."

Hikari groaned, rubbing her bottom as she stood up. "Who are you?" she asked.

The person—or more likely—the old woman stood up. "Why, I'm the Fairy Godmother of course!" she giggled at the end. Hikari was speechless. A fairy. Seriously? Well, she did appear out of nowhere… she was a little convinced that the old woman is a real fairy. "Now… why are you crying, dear?" she asked, snapping Hikari from her thoughts.

"W-What?! I-I'm not crying!" Hikari wiped her face with her plain white shirt, erasing all evidence of her crying. It was impossible to do that though. Her shirt was soaked with her tears and snot. She pulled her best grin at Fairy Godmother, giving a thumbs up. "I wasn't crying! The water from the fountain just splashed my face and I was too lazy to wipe it off! Hahaha! Who says that I was crying?" she tried to convince.

Fairy Godmother shook her head at Hikari's attempt to look strong. "There's no use hiding your sadness, child. I could even feel it from your heart." She pointed out.

"My heart?" Hikari placed a hand over her chest, looking down.

Fairy Godmother sat back on fountain and patted the empty spot beside her. "Sit. Sit, child." Hikari hesitantly walked over to the fountain and sat down beside the blue cloaked fairy. "Now tell me what's wrong." She folded her hand on her lap.

Hikari shrugged. "I think I just lost my world… my friends, my family…my brother." Her eyes looked down to her shoes. She gripped the slingshot tighter. There's no use crying again, she won't find anyone if she's only cries. If that could, she would've cried hours ago. "I… I want to see them again. I want to know if they're okay. I… I want to find them." Her eyebrows furrowed down in determination.

Fairy Godmother smiled and placed her hand over Hikari's. "You have a strong heart, my dear." She said and stood up. "With a heart like yours, I'm sure you will find your family and friends." She giggled.

Hikari nodded. "Yeah… thanks." She laughed a little too. The brunette stood up and brought the slingshot up to her face. "But I can't find them here anywhere…" she mumbled to herself.

"Do you think it's possible that they might be in another world?" Hikari asked the fairy.

Fairy Godmother hummed. "That might be possible… but there's a low chance they might be there. Traverse Town is the town where people goes after their world disappear. Why, I myself, am a refugee." She explained.

Hikari looked down. "Can you zap me there? To any world? You are a fairy…"

"Yes, yes, I am… but I'm afraid I cannot do that, my dear. It's too dangerous." The Fairy Godmother said and Hikari slumped her shoulders in disappointment. The old woman placed a hand on her chin and approached the brunette. She circled the young girl, humming. "Oh yes, yes! That's it!" she exclaimed excitedly.

Hikari's spirits were lifted up. "What's it?" she asked.

"Come, come! I have a friend for you to meet." The Fairy Godmother said, leading the girl to the alley.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Are…those steps moving?" Hikari questioned, pointing at the moving steps over the water.

Fairy Godmother giggled at Hikari's expression. "They are. Now come, come!" She easily flew across the moving steps.

' _Easy for you to say!'_ Hikari thought as she jumped over one step and another, trying to avoid falling into the water. She didn't have any spare clothes. She wasn't going to risk getting wet. "Made it…" she huffed out tiredly.

Hikari straightened up and took a deep breath. She looked up, observing the two story building before walking inside the building. Her blue eyes widened when she was met with mountains and mountains of thick books. She glanced around the small space. There was a stage in the middle of the room. On top of it were chairs and a table, along with two old people sitting on the chairs. A vacant seat was there. Probably prepared for her.

The aged man glanced over to her and waved his hand in a friendly manner. "Why, hello there! Sit, sit!" he directed his hand to the empty chair. The brunette went up the short stairs to the stage and sat on the chair awkwardly. "Tea and biscuits? How much sugar do you want?" he snapped his fingers and the tea set flew over to her.

Hikari blinked at the floating tea set. She held the teacup as the teapot poured tea into her empty cup and a cube of sugar was placed inside her cup. The spoon stirred itself before floating its way to Hikari's other free hand. The young girl blinked at the impossible action.

"Uh… Thanks." Hikari said as she slowly sipped her tea. "Don't wanna be rude, but who are you again?" she asked.

The old man cleared his throat. "Why I'm Merlin the Wizard! And you must be Hikari. The Fairy Godmother told me about your wish." He said.

The brunette nodded her head. "Yeah. I want to go to other worlds to find my family and friends. Is it possible for me to do that?" she asked.

Merlin stroked his beard. "Yes, yes, it is possible… but not without proper training you're not."

Hikari gave a confused look. "Proper training?"

"You see, my dear, traveling to other worlds is quite dangerous. You don't know what is out there or what enemy you will face." Fairy Godmother explained. She inserted her left hand into her right sleeve and pulled out a white wand. "Which is why we are going to train you in the art of magic!" she waved her hand in a circle.

Hikari's blue eyes sparkled. "Really?! Magic? Are you serious?" she stood up from her chair, showing her growing excitement.

"Of course! The King told me to teach the Keyblade wielder how to use magic, but I haven't taught anyone magic in years!" Merlin laughed as he moved his hand and a part of the ceiling went down. He motioned for Hikari to follow him and the Fairy Godmother. The three stood on the step and waited as it lifted them up to the attic. "So taking a student might jog my teaching skills!" he added with a chirp.

"Keyblade wielder? What's a keyblade wielder?" Hikari questioned, remembering the term Merlin used.

Fairy Godmother waved her wand and a 3D projection appeared on the middle of the room. A person stood, holding a giant key. "A keyblade wielder is someone who wields a keyblade. The Keyblade's ability is the power to open or close any lock or door, be it to a physical object, to the heart of a person or world, or to a gate or pathway between worlds." She explained and with a wave of her wand, new 3D projections were added. It was the Heartless. The keyblade wielder began to attack the Heartless. "But they are the ones who can free the hearts in the Heartless." A heart came out from the Heartless and the projection disappears completely.

"Oh wow…" Hikari stared at the now empty room. If that's what they were going to teach her then bring it on! She always wanted to know how to make objects appear. "Haha… I can't believe it… I'm going to learn Magic! From a fairy and a wizard at that…" She said under her breath, trying to contain her excitement.

"Let's start with the basics."

"There are basically nine: Fire, Blizzard, Aero, Thunder, Gravity, Stop, Magnet and Reflect, but you will also need to learn Cure. If you learn the basic of these spells, you can vary your own." Merlin explained and demonstrated some of the spells. He even demonstrated a few of the variety from Blizzard and Fire.

"If you can master them, you can move up to the next tier." Fairy Godmother casted Fira, a large version of a fire ball than Fire. "By adding –ra or –ga, your magic will be stronger." She finished.

Hikari stared in awe. "Wow…. Complicated, but still wow." She turned to face Merlin and the Fairy Godmother. "Let me try! Blizzard!" she turned around and yelled out as she stretched out her hand.

It wasn't big and grand as the ones Merlin and Fairy Godmother cast. Compared to them, hers' was just as tiny as an ice cube.

The three of them stood in silence.

Hikari scratched the back of her head. "At least I made an ice cube, right? Hahaha." She laughed sheepishly.

Fairy Godmother nodded her head in agreement. "It's a good start."

Hikari pumped her fist up. "Alright! Second try! Here we go!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Sora sighed as he exited the shop. He was hoping that he could find someone that might know where Hikari, Riku or Kairi are. He glanced around the town. He had been woken up by a dog in this strange town around an hour ago.

"They'll come at you out of nowhere."

Surprised, Sora turned to face the man, the mysterious weapon in hand. "Who are you?" he asked, taking a defensive position.

The man seemed to ignore Sora's question, "They'll keep coming at you as long you hold the keyblade." He took a few steps closer and observed the young boy, his eyes stopping at the giant key. "But why… why did it choose a kid like you?" he continued.

Sora gave a slightly offended look. "Hey! What does that supposed to mean? I'm not just some kid! My name's Sora!"

The man scoffed before walking forward again. "Enough. Let me see that Key."

"No way I'm letting you see it now!" Sora gripped on the handle and positioned himself to attack. "Just try and take it!"

"Very well." The man drew out a weapon, one that seemed to resemble a sword and a gun.

The man charged at Sora in full speed. Sora quickly dodge rolled away and ran down the stairs. He turned around when he saw a shadow. He blocked the man's attack and held his position. He pushed the man back with all his might.

The man stared at the brunet. "You're a lot tougher than you look."

Sora smirked. "Hah! Not so tough are you now!" he dashed forward and swung his keyblade at the man, who easily blocked the attacks. The man tripped Sora over and the boy landed with a thud. Sora quickly rolled to the left when the man swung his gunblade down. _'Yikes! This guy is serious!'_ he got up to his feet and glared.

The man suddenly glanced over his shoulder. "This has gone long enough." He said and approached Sora, who kept backing away and throwing threats at him to knock him out with his keyblade or something like that. The man raised his hand. "Sleep." He ordered.

"Wha—," Sora tried to say, but was interrupted when darkness took over his vision. He fell backwards and his keyblade landed with a loud clang.

"Wow, Leon, I always knew your boring speeches and bland tone would put people to sleep." A feminine voice giggled.

Leon turned around, facing the girl. "Yuffie. Just shut up and help me carry this kid to the hotel." He grunted.

"Okie dokie!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Sora groaned, holding his head.

"Hey! You finally woke up! You okay?" a vision of Kairi clouded his mind. The brunet could only nod his head. "Sorry we had to take you here by force. Otherwise those blade creatures would attack you again. It's your heart they want because you wield the keyblade." She continued.

"Wow, Kairi… I didn't know you're an expert in this…" Sora said, still in a daze.

'Kairi' leaned back and placed her hands on her hips. "Kairi? Who's Kairi? I'm the great ninja Yuffie!" she exclaimed. The vision of Kairi suddenly disappeared and was replaced with a girl with short black hair. The girl turned towards the man leaning on the doorframe. "I think you over done it, Squall. You permanently gave him brain damage." She said.

"That's Leon to you." Leon corrected with a frown. He turned to face Sora. "We have more important matters to discuss." He picked up the keyblade beside him.

Leon examined the keyblade and sighed. "It's hard to believe… that of all the people out there, you're the Chosen One." The keyblade vanished from Leon's grasp and reappeared in a burst of light in Sora's hand. The boy looked surprised when the weapon came back to him magically. "But I guess beggars can't be choosers." He continued.

"Hey! Why don't you try explaining things more clearly this time?" Sora complained.

Yuffie sat on the bed. "Well, you already know about other worlds, right?" she watched as Sora nodded his head unsurely. He woke up in a whole new different place, so other words do exist. "The worlds used to be isolated before the Heartless came. The Heartless are beings without hearts and the darkness in people's hearts… that's what attracts them." She explained.

"The Heartless have great fear of the keyblade. That's why they'll keep coming after you no matter what." Leon added.

Sora glanced down to the keyblade. "I didn't ask for this... it just appears out of nowhere…"

Yuffie laughed. "The keyblade chooses its master and it chose you!"

Leon nodded. "So tough luck."

Sora looked down. "What happened to my islands? My family and my friends?" he demanded as he stood up from the bed.

The man shook his head.

Sora slumped his shoulders.

"You look like someone I passed the other day." Leon suddenly said out of the blue. His expression might not seem like it, but he was trying to lift the young boy's spirits. "Come to think of it, she resembles you a lot." He continued.

"Hikari! That has to be Hikari! She's here?! Where is she now?" Sora quickly bombarded Leon with questions. He has been hearing bad news all this long. It's good to hear that her sister made it out from the islands.

Leon shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. You should ask Aerith. I saw her talking to your sister." He admitted.

Sora nodded his head. "Then where's Aerith? I have to ask if Hikari's alright!" he shouted, worry in his tone.

"Leon!" Yuffie suddenly yelled as a Heartless appeared in the room.

Leon clicked his tongue in annoyance. "We'll have to wait! Yuffie, go!" He barked out and Yuffie nodded. The young ninja ran towards the red door behind him. He turned to face Sora. "Let's go, Sora." He ran to the Heartless and rammed it out of the hotel from the balcony.

Sora watched as the man jumped from the balcony. "Uh… I'll take the stairs." He said and quickly dashed out of the room.

' _Wait for me, Hikari… Your big bro is going to find you.'_

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Hatchu!"

"Bless you, dear."

"Ugh… thanks." Hikari wiped her nose. She sat on the chair with the two elderly magical people, having a little tea party before the girl set off on a journey to find her family. She raised the teacup and took a sip. "Someone must be talking about me." She said.

Fairy Godmother set her teacup down, smiling. "You've learned the basic quite fast for a first timer."

Hikari laughed, taking a bite from a cookie. "Yeah… I have to be quick to find my family and my friends, right?"

Merlin nodded. "I think you're ready to go out there." At this, the brunette cheered happily. She was going to travel to other worlds to find her brother. "But not without a vessel you're not."

Hikari stopped for a moment. "A vessel?" she echoed.

"Why yes. You'll need a ship to travel in the Lanes in Between." Fairy Godmother.

The brunette groaned. "I can't even ride a bicycle let alone drive a ship!" she sat back down on her chair and rested her forehead on the table. She looked up to the two. "Can you teach me a spell that could… I don't know… transport me to other worlds?" she asked eagerly.

Merlin shrugged. "I can, but it might take years for you to master that spell. If you do it carelessly it might just be a part of your body being transported." The girl cringed at the thought. The wizard reached inside of his bag and pulled out an object. He placed it on the table, allowing the brunette to see. It was a star shaped object. "This is a star shard. It's very rare indeed."

"What does it do exactly?" Hikari asked as she furrowed her eyebrows to inspect t better.

"The star shard transports the user and the ones who are in physical contact to anywhere the user wants. But in order to do that, you must have control over the shard. Otherwise the shard might take you anywhere." Merlin explained the usage. He stared at the shard for a minute before laughing. "Why, this used to belong to a great wizard just like me! It was passed down to his apprentice, King Mickey Mouse."

Hikari's eyes widened. "Wow! Really?"

Merlin nodded. "Yes, in fact… The king himself lend it to me when he asked me to teach the keyblade wielder some magic."

"But will it really be okay for me to use it? The King did lend it to you…" Hikari hesitated.

"I've been meaning to give it back to him, but he's been jumping around lately and it's impossible to return it now." Merlin said and handed the star shard to the girl's hand. "Perhaps you can take it and give it back to him if you meet him." He said.

Hikari stared at the star shard, a grin slowly making its way to her face. "Gee… I don't really know what to say… Thank you." She got up from her seat and gripped the star shard tightly. "Well, I guess it's time for me to go."

Fairy Godmother giggled. "Oh, not yet! I have a gift for you! Bibbidi bobbidi boo!" she moved her want and chanted. The bright light engulfed the brunette completely and disappeared a few seconds later. Hikari glanced down to find that she was now wearing a black and blue short-sleeved jacket with a few gold lines, a pair of black fingerless gloves and of course, a new belt that has three different size of small pouches. "There you go, my dear." She smiled.

Hikari stared at the new outfit in awe. "Thank you so much, Fairy Godmother."

Merlin's eyes traveled to the wooden slingshot Hikari has. "Do you want a new slingshot? That one you're holding doesn't really make that much damage." He pointed out.

Hikari lifted the slingshot up and smiled. "Nah… Sora and Riku are the ones who made it for me when I was little. It's the only thing I have to remember them by." She placed the slingshot into one of the pouches on her second belt.

"A little something from me." Merlin snapped his fingers and a staff appeared right in front of her. It was a simple silver colored rod and top of it was some sort of crystal. "You'll need a weapon to defeat those Heartless. Although you can cast spells with just your hand, a rod will enhance your abilities."

Hikari stared at the gifts the two gave her. "Thank you so much… is there anything that I can do in return?" she asked, smiling brightly.

Merlin hummed. "Well… there is something that you can do. You see there is a world that's inside a book called the Hundred Acre Woods. The pages of the book had been lost, scattered across the worlds. If you can look for it, please do. It'll be a shame if the world is lost." He said.

The brunette nodded her head. "Yeah, of course."

The three of them excited the house.

"Don't be a stranger. Do come back and visit." Fairy Godmother smiled.

Hikari laughed. "I won't! If I can get the hang of this star shard, I'll visit every time!"

"That's the spirit!" Merlin nodded.

Hikari turned around, staring at the stars. She grabbed the star shard and lifted it up to the sky.

"Alright, star shard… Let's go!"

The star shard shined brightly and in a flash, she was gone.

* * *

A/N: that's the end of chapter two! I hope you guy enjoyed it!

what Hikari looks like is just like the cover I done

special thanks to: kat151820, Twilight Dark Angel, Starlit Storyteller for adding this story to their alerts!

special thanks to:kat151820, Twilight Dark Angel, Starli Storyteller, Allspark Princess for adding this story to their favs!

question: what part of this chapter do you guys like? And who's your favorite character?

Mine is everyone! (Except Xehanort...)

reviews are appreciated

until next chapter, ciao~


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Thank you guys so much! I hope you guys like this chapter as well!

Guest: Thank you. I'm glad you find it interesting ^^

BlueXRedKnight: Haha me too! Thank you so much!

Gry20: Yeah I'm planning it soon ^_^ I can imagine that too! And thank you so much! That really means a lot to me : D

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix

* * *

Chapter 3: Wonderland

Sora glanced up to the sky when he spotted a bright light shooting up.

"What… was that?" the brunet questioned, staring at the spot where the light disappeared. He received a 'key', fight giant Heartless and met walking and talking animals, but he never seen a star going upwards and then disappeared in a blink of an eye. He rubbed his eyes, "Huh… maybe I'm seeing things." He mumbled to himself.

"Gawrsh, Sora… are you alright?" Goofy, one of his new friends, asked as he come up to his right. "You've been starin' at the sky for a while now."

Sora shook his head and grinned. "Nah, it's nothing. Don't worry." He reassured, crossing his hands behind his head.

"So how much longer are we going to be here? We need to get going!" the duck, Donald, quacked. He tapped his foot impatiently as he crossed his arms.

Sora glanced down at Donald, "Just… Just a little longer. I need to look for Hikari." He said, walking straight to the railings. His eyes scanned the second district from the higher ground. "Aerith said that she went to the second district. So she has to be around here somewhere… I just know it." he kept on searching.

"Hikari! Hikari! Come out! It's me, Sora! Your big brother!"

Donald and Goofy looked at each other. They know how important it is for Sora to find his sister, but the King and the other worlds need their help. They want to tell Sora that they really need to get going, but couldn't say it to the boy without breaking his spirits.

"—it's safe now! There's no more Heartless! I promise to always protect you! Look! I have something to whack them with!" Sora raised his keyblade above his head, a half grin on his face. His grin dropped when he didn't hear any response. He summoned the keyblade away and ran towards one of the shops. A hand grabbed his shoulder before he could even reach the shop. He looked up to find a man. "Leon! I know that we have to go, but let me just look at this one more store!" he pleaded.

Leon stared at Sora's eyes. "You said that for the past four shops." He said, releasing Sora's shoulder when the young boy looked down in disappointment. The man sighed and crossed his arms. "Look, Sora… I know how much you want to find your sister here, but you need to get going with them. The worlds out there need your help and they can't do it alone." He explained.

Aerith came and stood next to Leon. "He's right, Sora. You're the only one who can do it. Besides, your sister might already be traveling to other worlds, looking for you. She seemed pretty determined to find you." She said, smiling at the memory of the girl. At the mention of Hikari looking for him, he immediately brightens. She noted that the two siblings' eyes lit up when they're happy. "And we'll keep an eye out for her over here at Traverse Town." She reassured, giving a wink.

Sora nodded his head, a huge smile across his lips. "Yeah. Thanks." He said and walked over to Donald and Goofy. "Alright guys… let's get going!" he cheered, pumping his fists up.

"About time!" Donald nodded his head.

"Don't worry, Sora… we'll find your sister and your friends in no time!" Goofy said, giving his famous laugh.

Sora laughed back. "Yeah."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Whoa!"

The bright light zig-zagged across the sky and it faded when Hikari landed on the ground with a loud thud. The girl groaned, staring at the Star Shard in her hand. "Ouch… Was that supposed to happen?" She sat up, rubbing her head. "…better learn to stick the landing next time…" she said to herself, her face scrunched up in pain.

"Where am I now?" Hikari stood up, placing the Star Shard away into the pouch. Her blue eyes glanced around her surroundings. Her eyes widened when she realized that everything was huge! She looked up to the tall grass and giant plants, almost falling on her back because she had to tilt her head up so high. "Oh wow! Everything's so freaking huge!" she yelled.

The brunette explored the area. It was easy to get lost and distracted, but the talking flowers were kind enough to guide her if she gave them something in return. One of them even pointed out to another place that she could explore. But to reach that place, she has to climb the leaves and lotus flowers.

"Hup!" Hikari jumped from one leaf to another, getting higher and higher, until she reached the very top. She was lucky that Merlin and the Fairy Godmother taught gave her the ability to jump higher than normal, otherwise, she would've climbed all the way up! And that would be a waste of energy and time. At the very top, the grass blades formed something like a cave. She glanced back down and cringed. "Yikes! Wouldn't want to fall down and jump up all the way up here again…" she stepped back as she headed straight for entrance.

"Huh?" Hikari tilted her head. "Everything's back to normal…" she crossed her arms.

She walked a few steps forward. From behind, a couple of Heartless suddenly appeared. She turned back and found the Heartless facing her. Surprised, she tripped over a log and landed on her back.

Her eyes widened when a Shadow jumped and tried to clawed her heart. She did a reverse somersault, avoiding the Heartless. She summoned her rod and cast a simple Thunder spell. Lightning came down and strike the three Heartless. The three Heartless disappeared into black clouds and the brunette sighed in relieve. That was the first she has ever taken out a Heartless without the help of the masters of magic.

She stared at the rod and grinned. _'Maybe this isn't so bad after all!'_

The brunette stood up and patted the dirt off her pants with her free hand. Her eyes glanced over the signs hung around the forest. The signs didn't make any sense. They were pointing, yes, but to what location? She stared at one sign, scratching the back of her head in confusion.

"Lose something? Is it your way, perhaps?" a voice startled her. She looked around, her rod ready in hand. She jumped when something pearly white showed up. It was teeth. She pointed her rod at it and furrowed her eyebrows. Little by little, a figure began to appear. It wasn't a man or a woman, but a cat. A mysterious grinning cat with purple stripes. "Or an answer?" the cat asked, grinning widely.

Hikari blinked. She never seen a cat grin like that before. "How do you know that I lost something?" she lowered her rod a little.

The cat propped his head up. "Why I'm _the_ Cheshire Cat. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintances." It—he grinned.

"I'm Hikari and uh—nice to meet you too." Hikari introduced, using simpler introduction than the cat. "You know that I lost something… so must know where Sora is right? My parents and my friends too?" she looked up to the cat.

"Who?" Cheshire Cat asked.

"Sora. My brother. And my parents and my friends. You know them right?" Hikari began. The cat didn't respond. The girl sighed and crossed her arms. "Alright. Let's just start with Sora… he's my brother. About this tall, looks like me, but with spikier hair and wears a lot of red. Do you know where he is?" she asked, a frown on her face.

Cheshire Cat hummed. "Do _I_ know where he is?" he disappeared and Hikari's eyes widened at the disappearance. She looked around the forest for the cat. Suddenly the cat reappeared again, but only his head. "My dear, I know who Sora is, but I do not know where he is." He said.

Hikari groaned at the way Cheshire Cat talks. "Seriously? Is he here or is he not?" she asked.

"He's not, not yet anyway." Cheshire Cat's body appeared, unattached to his head. His paw held his head and spun it around. "But I do know that Alice is here." The grin never left his face.

"Alice? I'm not looking for Alice." Hikari said, raising an eyebrow. Funny. She never met anyone in the island with the name of Alice.

Cheshire Cat stopped spinning his head. "Oh? _Oh_ …A third party." if his grin could widen, it would. He disappeared, but his chuckle could still be heard. His tail stroked Hikari's nose, making her sneeze. She looked over her shoulder and found Cheshire Cat standing on her right shoulder. "So you're not with either of them? Interesting." He said.

Hikari looked confused. "Uh… should I? What's wrong with this Alice anyway?"

"Seek for Alice and you shall find what you want to find." The Cheshire Cat grinned, disappearing.

"WAIT! Where's Alice anyway?!" Hikari shouted, looking for the cat to appear. This time, there seemed to be no sign of the cat reappearing again. "Can you at least tell me someone else I could ask?" she continued.

"If I were looking for her, I'd look for the White Rabbit first."

Hikari stared in disbelief. "H-How am I supposed to find the White Rabbit?!" she yelled out in frustration. She pinched the bridge of her nose, taking a few deep breaths. "Okay, okay… just stay cool… I can find this rabbit!" she said walking away from the tree.

As if on cue, something came running down from a path.

"Oh dear! Oh dear! Help! Help!" a white rabbit with a suit came running towards her. It ran between her legs, still panicking. "There's a monster in my house! Help!" he screeched.

Hikari leaned down, staring at the rabbit from between her legs. Her view was upside down, but it was clear that it was the White Rabbit. She quickly straightened up and chased the White Rabbit down. "Hey! Wait! Rabbit in the suit! White Rabbit! Wait up!" she shouted.

The White Rabbit looked back. "I simply can't wait for you! I have to find someone to get rid of the monster!" he said. He held his pocket watch and jumped up in fright. "Oh dear! I'm already late! How will I ever make it in time?!" he cried.

Hikari leaned down and showed the rabbit her rod. "Maybe I can help and get rid of this monster." She offered with a smile. "But on one condition… you have to take me to Alice. How's that?"

"Yes, yes! Now hurry!" the White Rabbit jumped on her head and ran off to the direction of his house.

Hikari stayed behind for a few second, trying to calm herself down. She stood up, taking a deep breath. "You're lucky that I need you to find Alice… otherwise you'll be a roasted rabbit by now!" she cursed under her breath.

The brunette followed the White Rabbit to his house. It was hard to keep up with the jittering rabbit, but his constant 'oh dear' and his 'I'm late', she could easily find him. When the two arrived, the house was a common sight, but the giant human inside is not! A giant human girl was inside the house, her arms and legs sticking out from the door and windows. Her head was seen from the window of the second floor. The human girl looked very uncomfortable and troubled.

The girl's blue eyes followed Hikari and the White Rabbit. "Oh! You brought help, Mr. Rabbit!" she said happily.

"It talks! The monster talks!" The White Rabbit his himself behind Hikari.

Hikari cleared her throat. "Uh… I don't think she's a monster."

"I don't care! Just get rid of it!"

Hikari sighed and walked towards the giant girl.

The girl spotted the brunette. "Oh are you going to help me?" she asked.

"Yeah. Say… are you perhaps Alice?" Hikari questioned.

"Yes, that is me. But could you please help me first? It is a bit uncomfortable…" Alice said, moving her fingers.

"How do I uh…shrink you?" Hikari looked up.

Alice pointed her finger at the garden to the left. "Perhaps a vegetable from Mr. Rabbit's garden will help." She said. Hikari nodded and was about to get the vegetable but stopped when Heartless began to appear around her and Alice. She readied her rod and stood in a fighting stance. "Oh dear…" Alice murmured at the sight of black creatures surrounding her.

"Don't worry! I got this covered!" Hikari lifted her rod and cast Thunder again. "Thunder!" she yelled out, zapping nearby Heartless.

She cast another spell, Blizzard, to freeze the Heartless. Once they were frozen in blocs on ice. She smacked the ice, making it breaks along with the Heartless. She dodged a Shadow that lunged at her and she hit the Heartless with the rod, making it disappear. She glanced over to Alice, finding that a lot more Heartless surrounding her.

The brunette abandoned the Heartless surrounding her, jumping over to protect Alice from the attacks of the Heartless. She cast a shield to protect herself and Alice's ace from a fireball. She returned the attack with her own fireball, shooting at the Heartless that attacked them.

"Take this! And that!" Hikari kept on casting spells, killing off the Heartless one by one. That is, until, she ran out of magic. "Thunder!" she cast, but the lightning never came.

Hikari stared at her rod. _'Oh man! I think I ran out! Ether! Ether! Where's that Ether!'_ She reached out to her pouch frantically, looking for the Ether to fill up her magic again. There was only one Heartless left, but it was the round and difficult one. She jumped out of the Heartless' way when it charged at her. She dodged roll away and threw her rod at the Heartless' back. The Heartless disappear at the impact, making the brunette and the blonde girl sighed in relieve. _'Thank goodness…'_ she thought as she summoned the rod away.

"Oh thank goodness! I thought those creatures would never leave…" Alice said.

Hikari nodded in agreement as she took out the Ether. She used the Ether and recovered her magic as she went to the garden. She took one of the vegetables and headed straight back to Alice.

"Here you go, Alice."

"Why thank you."

As soon as Alice ate the carrot she shrunk back and there were no more limbs sticking out of the door and windows.

The White Rabbit ran over to Hikari. "Oh, this is wonderful! I thank you for getting rid of the monster!" he joyfully said, jumping up and down. He took a peek to his pocket watch and his joy filled face was changed to a frightened one. "Oh dear! I'm clearly late! Late! LATE!" He screamed, running off.

Hikari scratched behind her head. "Geez! What's wrong with that rabbit?"

From the gap between the door and the floor, a mini Alice came out. She was the size of a doll. "Oh please wait, Mr. Rabbit!" she shouted as she ran after the White Rabbit.

"Huh—Alice! Wait!" Hikari yelled out, trying to catch up with the young girl. She panted when she reached the forest. She looked around the forest, trying to find the miniature blonde. She sighed heavily. "Back to square one…" she slumped down tiredly.

"I say, how is the search going? Did you find Alice?" the Cheshire Cat appeared above the brunette.

Hikari groaned. "I did… but she ran off to somewhere…"

The Cheshire Cat chuckled. "I'd ask the Mad Hatter if I were you, in a westerly way."

Hikari pondered to herself. She wasn't that good with riddles. "Westerly? West? Should I go west?" she looked over to her left and stared at the narrow path. She shrugged and decided to follow the path. "If I can find Alice… I don't see why not…" she mumbled.

"A tip, try not to lose Alice again. Otherwise it will be permanent." The Cheshire Cat warned, his whole body disappearing, leaving his grin behind. His grin disappeared soon after as well.

"Try not to lose Alice or else it will be permanent? What does that mean?" Hikari repeated, a hand on her chin as she tried to think. She didn't get the riddle. Perhaps the Cheshire Cat was just messing with her head. She shook her head and continued to walk towards the Mad Hatter's house. As she neared a clearing, she could hear someone singing. "Is that… singing?" she wondered and quickened her pace.

"That's how we sing the day away!"

"A very merry un-birthday to all!"

Hikari blinked as two tiny men raised their cups of tea and poured it in each other's mouth. There were many and she meant many teapots on the table, each pouring out steam from the spout. She walked closer to the table and cleared her throat, trying to get the two little men's attention.

"Uh… Hey! You two! Have you seen Alice?" Hikari shouted over the sound of the whistling teapots.

The two men finally notice her. "No room! No room!" the two rushed to her, making the brunette back away. "All seats are taken!" the one with the ears, the March Hare, shouted.

Hikari blinked, looking back at the chairs and then to the two men. "But the seats are empty—never mind! I'm just here to ask where Alice is." She explained.

"It's very rude to attend a party without an invitation!" The other man, the Mad Hatter, continued. He crossed his arms and turned away, turning his back on her.

Hikari gave a look. "I don't even want to attend this party. I just want to know if you know where Alice is!" she tried to be patient with them. "You know what? I'm going back to ask that cat again." She angrily made her way towards the gate.

Suddenly, the March Hare stopped her. "But we never have guests…" he trailed off.

The Mad Hatter agreed. "Oh yes, yes! Do stay for tea!" the two dragged Hikari to one of the empty seats and out of nowhere an empty cup appeared in the March Hare's hand.

"Okay… I don't get any of this…" Hikari watched as the March Hare poured the tea into the cup.

"Oh but it's your un-birthday party!" The Mad Hatter said, gulping down his tea.

"My what? This is so random…" The brunette sighed and leaned back against the chair.

The March Hare laughed. "She doesn't know what an un-birthday is!" he handed the cup of tea to the girl, but when she was about to take it, the March Hare took it back, drinking it himself.

"I would like to know what an un-birthday is." A new voice said from the gate. The three glanced over to the gate and Hikari's eyes widened. She stood up from her chair as she recognized the blonde girl coming into the gate. The girl noticed the people staring at her. "Well? I heard signing of an un-birthday, so are you not going to tell me what an un-birthday is?" she asked, crossing her arms.

"Alice!" Hikari shouted.

Alice turned her head to the brunette and smiled. "Oh hello!" she waved her hand in greeting.

Hikari was about to greet the blonde, but the Mad Hatter and the March Hare beat her to it. "A guest! A guest! Do come and sit!" the Mad Hatter shouted and somehow pushed Hikari off her chair. "Please have some tea!" he laughed, his tongue sticking out.

"HEY! Rude much!" Hikari recovered and stood up, glaring at the tiny men. She crossed her arms and sat on the seat beside Alice, all the while glaring at the two men.

"So you don't know what an un-birthday is?" The Mad Hatter asked. Alice and Hikari glanced at each other and then shook their head. "You have a birthday right? That means you have three hundred and sixty-four days to celebrate your un-birthday!" he began to show his fingers, trying to make his point.

Alice giggled. "Please do explain in a song. I'd love to hear your lovely song again."

Hikari gave the blond girl a look. "Seriously? I don't want to. I think they're tone-deaf—OUCH! What was that for?!" she looked over to Alice, giving her a glare as she rubbed her ribs.

"Don't be rude to those lovely tiny men." Alice chided.

"I'm rude? They're the ones who pushed me off the chair earlier!" Hikari huffed childishly, puffing her cheeks out.

The table shook violently, making every teapot move. Alice and Hikari quickly stood up and backed away as the two mad men continued to have their tea party. Hikari stood defensively in front of Alice as she summoned her rod back.

"W-What's going on?" Alice asked, frightened by the sudden change.

"Something bad I think…" Hikari answered, beads of sweat rolling down her face.

Alice glanced over to the Mad Hatter and the March Hare. "Oh you two have to get out of there!" she reached her hand out to the two, running to their place.

Before Alice could go far, Hikari looked up when a large shadow consumed them and grabbed Alice's wrist. A large Heartless was seen coming down on them. Hikari quickly pulled Alice and jumped away to safety.

"Get down!"

Hikari shielded Alice as teapot came flying towards them. Luckily, she cast a shield around, preventing the bits of glass and ceramic from injuring them.

"Oh dear! Oh dear!" a voice was heard flying above the two girls.

Alice gasped. "Oh no! The Mad Hatter and the March Hare!"

Hikari looked up as well, staring at the Mad Hatter and the March Hare as they fall into the trees. She looked back at the Heartless in front of them. "Don't worry about them Alice! If they can still drink tea while falling like that, they'll be okay." She reassured, standing in a fighting stance. "Right now we have something else to worry about."

Alice hid behind Hikari. "Oh that's a big monster…" she said under her breath.

"Go! I'll fight it! Just find somewhere safe and I'll come find you when this is over!" Hikari instructed and Alice nodded.

The blonde girl ran away from the scene, leaving the giant Heartless with Hikari.

"Alright, clown! It's just you and me!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Sora landed on the floor smoothly along with Donald and Goofy…not so much. His blue eyes glanced around the bizarre room. After going into this world, he and his friends were falling. There were floating furniture everywhere! And now, here he was, in an ordinary room.

That is until a rabbit shows up.

"Oh my fur and whiskers! I'm late! I'm late!" A white rabbit ran pass him in a flurry. "Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear! I'm here, I should be there!" the rabbit panted.

Sora blinked, not believing his eyes. "Was that… a rabbit?"

"Gawrsh… I think it was. Let's follow it!" Goofy said, walking after the rabbit.

The trio of friends nodded, following where the rabbit goes.

Sora opened the door and was surprised when he found a second door. "Huh? Another door?" he opened the second door that lead to the third door. Confused, he just opened the third door, hoping there were no more doors behind the third one. He crouched down to fit inside the last door. "Hey! Rabbit! Wait up!" he shouted as he caught sight of the rabbit going inside an even smaller door.

The brunet leaned down to get a better look at the door. "How did he get so small?" he questioned aloud.

"No, you're simply too big." The doorknob suddenly answered, surprising them all.

"WAAK! It's talks!" Donald exclaimed in surprise.

The doorknob yawned sleepily. "Must you be so loud? You woke me up…"

Goofy laughed. "A-hyuck! Good morning!" he waved his hand in greeting.

"Good night! I need more sleep…" just before the doorknob went to sleep, Sora leaned forward, trying to grab the knob.

"Wait! Before you get back to sleep, how about you tell us how we can get small too, like that rabbit?" Sora asked, leaning a bit more forward.

The doorknob yawned. "Why don't you try the bottle over there?" he said, revering to the clear bottle with a 'drink me' note.

"Wait! One more! Did you see a girl come around here?" Sora shouted.

The doorknob sighed. "A girl you say?" he pondered for a moment. "Why yes. A girl visited earlier."

"Really?!" Sora's eyes brightened at the thought of finding Hikari or even better, Kairi and Hikari in this world all together. He glanced over his shoulder to meet with Goofy's smile and Donald's nod. "Well? Where is she now?" he laid flat on the floor, to listen as much as he can.

"She's on the other side of this door of course. But do please push that bed aside. There is another door that would lead you to the other side. Now if you please excuse me, I would like to go back to sleep now." The doorknob said and went back to sleep, snoring loudly.

"This might be it guys! Hikari has to be in this world!" Sora exclaimed excitedly. He quickly pushed the be aside. Just like what the doorknob said, there was a door behind it. Sora examined the door before going back to the table.

Donald crossed his arms. "I dunno, Sora… she might be someone else…"

Sora turned to look at the duck, holding the bottle with the blue liquid inside. "C'mon Donald! I know that it's a billion to one, but at least it's a start! If Hikari is a step ahead then we might catch up!" he grinned, absolutely positive that he might find his sister in this world.

The brunet drank the liquid and he shrunk to the size of a doll.

Donald sighed, his shoulders slumped.

Goofy placed his hand on Donald's shoulder. "C'mon Donald." He said before drinking the same liquid Sora did.

"Alright, alright."

* * *

A/N: End of chapter three! I do hope you guys like it!

Special thanks to StormMoonStarLight and BlueXRedKnight for adding this story to their favs!

And special thanks to BlueXRedKnight for adding this story to his/her alerts!

Reviews are appreciated, and please no flames!


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I might change the title and summary in the future, but anyway, hope you guys enjoy this chapter too!

Gry20: Aww thank you! That's is awesome! Though I might or might not add Atlantica… but I love your ideas ^_^

Lulu9814: thank you!

Guest: here's another update!

BlueXRedKnight: thank you haha :D

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix

* * *

Chapter 4: Wonderland part 2

Sora glanced around the bizarre surroundings. Everything was not what it seems. The flowers talk and there were many things that weren't supposed to exist. Like that talking doorknob for example, but upon entering the other side, more things that seemed impossible seem to exist. He never knew that hammers and pencils have wings.

"This place is so wacky…" Sora said as his eyes followed the butterfly. An actually _butter_ fly, with butter on toast as wings. "Hikari would've loved it here! It's almost the same as her imagination!" he laughed, curiously eyeing everything.

Goofy nodded his head. "Then I'm sure we would find her here."

The trio stopped when they came across a clearing that almost looked like a courtroom. Sora looked over to the deck of cards that act like the castle guards and took a step back when they readied their spears, giving them way. His blue eyes wandered from the White Rabbit to the lady in red and the girl standing before her.

The White Rabbit blew his trumpet. "Court is now in session!" he shouted.

"I'm on trial? But why?" the girl asked in disbelief.

The White Rabbit ignored her and took a deep breath, "Her Majesty, the Queen of Hearts, presiding!" he hoarsely yelled, bowing at the Queen.

The Queen lifted her chin up high, staring down at the girl. "This girl is the culprit! There's no doubt about it!" she pointed her little royal heart-shaped scepter at the girl accusingly. She crossed her arms over her chest, looking away from the girl. "And the reason why is because I said so, that's why!" she sneered, frowning deeply.

The girl was taken aback by the ridiculous reason. "That is so unfair!" the girl shouted.

The Queen scoffed. "Do you have anything to say in your defense, hmm?"

"Of course, I didn't do anything wrong!" The girl said, placing her hands on the table. "You may be the Queen, but I'm afraid that does not give you the right to be so mean!" she crossed her arms, a frown on her lips.

The Queen looked mad. "You dare defy the Queen?!" she fumed, slamming her hands on the table.

The girl took a step back, frightened by the sudden outburst. "Oh I wish she was here…" she mumbled to herself.

' _Wow… The lady somehow reminds me of mom when we forgot to do our chores… only worse… much worse.'_ Sora thought, staring at the Queen and then to the girl. He then turned to his two friends, crossing his arms over his chest. "Hey guys, I think we should help her out. No one deserve to get yelled like that…" he said.

"Yeah, but wouldn't that be muddling?" Goofy tilted his head confusedly.

Donald gave Goofy a look and turned to look at the brunet. " _Meddling_." He corrected. "Sorry, Sora, but it's against the rule."

"But—,"

The Queen cleared her throat. "The court finds the defendant guilty as charged! For the crimes of assault and attempted theft of my heart, off with her head!" she ordered and the card soldiers moved to where the girl is, their spears ready.

"Oh please no!" the girl shouted.

Sora quickly ran to the court. "Hold it right there!" He shouted as he appeared to face the short-tempered Queen.

"Who dares interferes with my court?!" The Queen stood up, glaring at the brunet who stood in the middle. "And what manner of creature are you scum?! Manner-less! All of you!" she screamed, pointing her finger at the trio.

Sora stood on his grounds, not afraid of the Queen. "Sorry, your Majesty, but she's not the culprit that's for sure!" he defended.

The Queen crossed her arms. "Oh? And do you have proof of that, hmmm?" she sneered, leaning over the high table.

"Well it's the Heart—," Donald quickly jumped onto Goofy's back and covered his mouth.

Sora glanced over to Donald and Goofy. He cleared his throat. "We're… working on that." He admitted, scratching the back of his neck.

There was a moment of silence, the only sound could be heard were the chattering teeth the King and the White Rabbit, as they were too afraid to stand up to the Queen.

The Queen took a deep breath from her nose and leaned back. "Very well! I shall humor your claim! Bring me the evidence of Alice's Innocence! Fail and it's all off with your heads!" she said.

"Until you conclude your investigations, the court is adjourned!"

Sora, Donald and Goofy blinked when the Queen slammed the gavel against the small piece of wood. The card soldiers took the girl into the cage located beside the Queen's high table. They shoved her inside and locked the cage. The three quickly went to see the poor girl.

Sora gave an encouraging smile. "We'll catch that culprit for you!" he said, giving a grin and a thumbs up.

The girl looked relieved. "Oh thank you!" she furrowed her eyebrows as she stared at Sora's face. "You look… familiar…" she said.

Sora's eyes widened. "Familiar? Really?!" he walked closer to the cage.

The girl nodded her head. "Oh yes! Now I remember! A girl who looks a lot like you." She said. "She was the one who helped me a lot, but we were separated… oh it is a shame I did not get her name…" she sighed, a disappointed look across her face.

Sora turned to face Donald and Goofy, giving them the happiest grin he has ever gave to anyone. "Did you hear that guys?! Hikari's here!" he said happily as Goofy covered his laugh with his hands and Donald nodded, giving a smile. The brunet turned back to face the blonde girl. "I'm Sora! It's nice to meet you." He held his hand out.

The girl smiled. "That is a unique name you have. I am Alice. It is nice to meet you." She did a curtsy and reached her hand out to shake Sora's hand.

Suddenly the cage was covered by a red curtain. "Visitin' hours are over!" the card of Spade shouted.

"Don't worry, miss. We'll find the real culprit for you." Sora said, despite the curtain separating them.

"Do seek the Cheshire Cat by the forest. He may have something to proof to the Queen that I'm innocence. And please do be careful." Alice said.

Sora nodded and walked away with Donald and Goofy from the courtyard to the forest, just like what Alice instructed.

"Do we even know where to start?" Donald whispered.

"We'll find this cat and ask it questions." Sora whispered back. "Piece of cake."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"How do I even defeat this thing?!"

Hikari jumped away from the Heartless' attack, barely dodging the fireballs it fired at her. She skidded to a stop and made a dash to jump over the fence-like-bush. She sighed in relief as she dodged the last fireball from the combo it kept on doing.

The brunette turned around and peeked over the bush, glaring at the Heartless. She tried using Thunder, but it didn't damage the Heartless that much. Blizzard helped… but not until it starts shooting massive fireballs. Aero only makes it worse. She also tried fighting fire with fire and that didn't end really well.

She jumped out of the way when a giant fireball was heading straight for her.

"This is tough!" Hikari shouted in frustration.

"Oh dear, oh dear... it seems that you are in need of help. I'll give you an advice." A voice chuckled and a set of white grinning teeth appeared. The Cheshire Cat appeared right beside her, waving his tail side to side. "To defeat the Trickmaster, you have to face it ahead." He said, tilting his head.

"Face it ahead?" Hikari mumbled and something clicked in her mind after she solved the Cheshire Cat's riddle. She pointed her rod at the Heartless' head. "Eat this, Trickmaster! Fira!" a large ball of fire was fired directly at the Heartless' head.

Trickmaster countered Hikari's magic with its own massive fireball, overwhelming her small one. She quickly dodge rolled from the fireball. She glared at the skinny Heartless, hoping that her glare would make it disappear. It didn't, but it did throw the flaming baton at her. She jumped away and landed in a distance, staring at the Heartless with a tired look.

Her blue eyes wandered to the exit.

"Oh? Giving up already? I thought you were more persistent than that." The Cheshire Cat stood on her shoulder, propping his head on Hikari's head.

The girl huffed. "Duh! This thing is impossible!"

The Cheshire Cat's head spun in place. "Now that's not an option. I would like to see what a neutral can do." He said and disappeared when the Trickmaster blew another fireball. Hikari dodged another one as she ran around to avoid getting caught on fire. The grinning cat appeared again, his head following where Hikari right beside her. "Sometimes, fighting fire with fire doesn't work." He said.

"Blizzard doesn't work! I don't know any water magic!" Hikari complained, glaring at the cat.

"How about a little boost?"

The head of the rod glowed. Hikari stared at it before her grip on it tightens. She ran to one of the chair and used it to jump higher to reach the Trickmaster's head. She did a flip in midair and narrowed her rod at the Trickmaster.

"Freeze!" Hikari casted a Blizarra spell and the head of her rod glowed a bright blue color. Snowflakes could be seen around it as a beam of light blue was shot. The spell hit the Trickmaster directly at its' head. As soon as Hikari's feet touched the ground, she threw the rod at the Trickmaster. She covered her eyes when the Heartless disappeared in a burst of black smoke. She slowly opened her eyes, looking at the spot the Heartless have disappeared. "Is… it gone?" she asked.

"Did I defeat it?" Hikari asked again, a smile slowly making its way to her lips.

"That, I can confirm." The Cheshire Cat grinned widely. His eyes stared at the place where the Heartless once stood. "So it's true. The only one who can do it, is the keyblade wielder." He continued.

"Haha… YES! Yes! I did it! Oh gosh! Finally!" Hikari cheered, lifting the rod above her head. She was overwhelmed with emotions. She defeated her very first big Heartless on her own! Well, with a little help from the Cheshire Cat, but she did it! She did it on her own without relying on anyone. Other than getting her very first B in math class in over three years, she never felt anything so accomplished before. "I can't wait to tell everyone! They'll be so surprised and I'll be like all 'yeah I did it' and they'll be like 'really'! Oh man!" she jumped around, expressing her emotions.

The overjoyed brunette turned to face the Cheshire Cat. "Thank you! Really!" she grinned.

"Oh but this isn't the time to celebrate." The Cheshire Cat said.

Hikari looked confused. "Yeah it is. I just defeated that Heartless… what's not to celebrate?"

The Cheshire Cat disappeared and reappeared on top of a stump. "While you were celebrating your victory, Alice is about to lose her head." He casually said.

"What?! Are you serious?!" Hikari shouted.

"Why yes, for the crimes of assault and attempt to steal the Queen's heart."

Hikari held her hand up. "Stop, stop. Back up. Please. What do you mean assault and steal the Queen's heart?" she questioned. It doesn't really make sense. The only things that would 'assault' and 'steal' are the Heartless. The two words doesn't fit Alice's character at all. "I know I've only known Alice for an hour or two, but that doesn't seem like her at all." she placed her hands on her hips.

The Cheshire Cat closed his eyes. "Indeed, for she's far too light to carry such a heavy crime." He said.

Hikari nodded her head in agreement. "Yeah! So where can I find this Queen?!" she swung the rod in her hand.

"To face the Queen, you must have patience as high as the sky or else with that temper of yours… your head shall be next." The Cheshire Cat warned. The brunette frowned at the cat, giving him a look. The grinning cat swiped his tail over the tree bark and it fell forward. Inside the stump, it leads to another green land with pretty red roses. Hikari eyes stared at the impossibility of another place being inside a stump, but this is a really wacky world to begin with. "A shortcut to the Queen's castle. Considered it as another gift for helping me." He said.

"Helping? I didn't help you with anything…" Hikari tilted her head.

The Cheshire Cat chuckled. "But you indeed." His head bounced a couple of times before it stopped. His body disappeared, but his head remained. "Oh? It seems the main guests have entered the stage." He said as his head disappeared.

It was his grin that was visible. "Farewell." And finally, the grin disappeared.

Hikari sighed and looked at the shortcut the Cheshire Cat opened for her. She bends down to fit the door's size. It was all real. As soon as she entered the rose garden, everything was bright. It was different from the dark and mysterious forest. She glanced around the garden. At first glance, nothing was wrong with the garden. It was green and full of roses. Except for the fact that the roses are painted red.

"What the—," Hikari touched one of the roses, staring at the red strain between her index finger and her thumb.

"Halt! In the name of the Queen!" someone shouted, surprising the girl. She jumped and turned around quickly, holding her rod tightly in her hand. Her blue eyes widened when she spotted a card-like-soldier pointing his speak at her face. "You are a violating rule number 105! No one must touch the Queen's roses, unless if it's the Queen herself!" it shouted.

Hikari gave a look. "What kind of stupid rule is that?!" she yelled.

"You are to be put on trial!" it continued.

"Nu-uh! No way! Mom and dad are gonna kill me if I end up in jail!" Hikari argued and swung her rod at the card soldier. She intended to cast a spell, but it all happened too quickly. Her rod whacked the card soldier's head, knocking it unconscious. It was silent for a few second as she stared at the flat body of the card soldier. She poked the card soldier a few times, crouching down to inspect the damage. "You're not…ummm _dead_ now are you?" she asked.

Hikari was about to cast Cure, but stopped when she saw the card soldier's hand twitched. "Oh good! Man… I would be in so much trouble…" she sighed in relief.

The brunette quickly left the card soldier and head straight for the courtyard. She skidded to a stop when she saw the whole place was crowded with card soldiers and a really angry-looking old lady. She hid behind the bush and peeked inside.

' _Now where's Alice?'_ Hikari thought. The Queen was high up, seated on the highest ground. Her card soldiers stood all around, guarding every inch of the yard. Her eyes landed on the cage that was covered by a red cloth. _'That must be where Alice is!'_ The brunette tried to look for another opening to get to the cage, but sadly she didn't find any.

' _One…two…four…six…'_ Hikari started to count the card soldier, thinking that if they were less than ten she would barge in and save Alice. _'Twenty-three… How am I going save Alice now? There's too many!'_ she groaned, sighing heavily.

She retreated from peeking and sat on the ground. Her eyes wondered to the unconscious card soldier she knocked out earlier. A grin made its way up to her lips as an idea came to mind. She summoned the rod away and quickly grabbed the card soldier, holding him up. She was going to use the card soldier to cover her up and act as him until she reached Alice's prison.

Hikari held the card soldier and stood behind him as she walked closer to the courtyard. As soon as she passed through the main entrance, she walked sideways to avoid getting seen. She walked along the garden's walls, her back facing the walls.

"How's it going? No intruder here haha!" Hikari said in a lower tone as they passed the other card soldiers. The brunette moved the card soldier's stick-like arm as she moved to wave at the other guards. When she reached the card soldier right beside the cage, she grabbed the card soldier's hand once again to give a salute. "Let me take over!" she said in her fake soldier voice.

The spade card saluted back and walked away.

Hikari sighed in relief. She quickly leaned the unconscious card soldier on the cage, giving enough space for her to hide as well. "Psst! Alice! Are you in there?" she said in a hushed voice as she lifted the cloth up a little.

"Oh! You are back! I am so glad you are here!" Alice bends down to talk to the brunette. "But you need a key to unlock this lock…" she said when Hikari inspected the lock.

Hikari peeked out from behind the card soldier, trying to find a soldier with keys.

"Where is that manner-less boy! My patience is running thin!" The voice of the Queen of Hearts surprised the two girls. As the Queen slammed her hand on the table, a faint clicking sound of a key against metal was heard. The brunette glanced up to the Queen and saw that she was the one who has the key. The Queen waved the key by the ring in an arrogant manner before placing it in her pocket.

Hikari took a deep breath before she went behind the high table to the long curtains. She was lucky there were stairs that lead to the top, otherwise she would have to climb up using the curtains. As quietly as she can, she climbed up the stairs, step by step. She crawled to the reach the Queen's seat and reached her hand out to grab the key in once swipe.

"Honestly! I regret ever giving that boy a chance!" The Queen complained, waving her royal scepter around. Hikari ducked her head down in time to avoid getting smacked. She sighed quietly and tried once more, but the Queen suddenly moved, standing up. "That is it! I have enough of this!" she screamed.

Hikari quickly moved under the table and covered her mouth.

"B-But my Queen! You have given the boy a chance! Give him some time." The tiny King tried to persuade his Queen. He held the Queen's hand and guided her back to sit on the chair. "Besides, your subject will find that you are generous enough to wait for the boy before beheading Alice's head." He said, smiling nervously.

The Queen suddenly looked happy. "Yes, yes, quite right."

"What the heck is going on?" Hikari said to herself, a look on her face. She shook her head and carefully crawled out while the Queen was distracted with the King's words. She reached her hand inside the Queen's pocket and quickly retreated when the Queen moved yet again. She hid behind the chair as the Queen glanced over to place where Alice's cage is. 'Darn it! Soooo close!' she huffed quietly.

"Hmph!" The Queen sneered, a smug look on her face when she saw the cage. She sat comfortably on her chair as she faced forward, her eyes closed, completely content that Alice is inside the cage. The key was now half way out from falling out of her pocket.

Hikari's eyes brightened at the sight of the key. She carefully took the key out and replaced the key with one of the cookies from the Mad Hatter's party she took. She cheered to herself and of course silently. She crawled back to the stairs and ran toward the cage as quickly as she can without getting caught. She hid behind the unconscious soldier again, this time with the key.

"Oh you got the key!" Alice said happily when Hikari held the lock and key.

Hikari grinned. "It wasn't easy, but… it was worth it." she said as the lock clicked open. She took the lock out and opened the cage, letting Alice out before closing it. "Follow my lead." She said and Alice nodded.

Alice stood behind Hikari as they both made their way out of the courtyard. As soon as the two girls made it out of the courtyard, Hikari quickly put the unconscious card soldier aside and ran to the forest with Alice at full speed. The brunette leaded Alice out using the shortcut the Cheshire Cat opened for her.

The two girls panted heavily. "Finally! We're away from that psychotic Queen!" Hikari said.

Alice placed her hand on her chest, smiling. "Yes, I do so agree. She may be Queen, but she is nothing more but a pompous, bad-tempered, old tyrant!" she said.

Hikari nodded her head. "You take the words right out of my mouth." She laughed.

"I believe I have enough adventure for one day… I should return home." Alice said, looking at the direction of where the talking doorknob is. "Oh dear! I certainly forgot!" she exclaimed and suddenly did a curtsy, bowing her head. "You saved me yet again and yet I don't even have your name. I'm Alice and thank you by the way… for saving me again. I am forever grateful."

Hikari grinned. "The name's Hikari!" she introduced.

Alice smiled, but her smile soon turned to a worried frown. "Although, I do feel sorry for the boy who tried to prove my innocence." She said.

"Nah! Don't worry! I'm sure this boy can take care of himself." Hikari waved off, crossing her hands behind her head. "I should be going to… looks like my brother isn't here too…" she sighed.

"Brother?" Alice tilted her head.

Hikari nodded. "Yeah, Sora. He's my brother." She laughed. "Well, bye, Alice! It was nice meeting you!" she shouted as she ran towards the way to the White Rabbit's house.

Alice waved her hand goodbye. "Goodbye! And thank you!" she shouted back. She gasped as she remembers something. "Oh wait Hikari! Your brother—!"

The brunette quickly halted and glanced over her shoulder. "Alice?" she called out, finding the blonde girl nowhere in sight. She scratched the back of her head confusedly. "Huh… I guess she really wants to go home… don't blame her though… this is a really wacky place." She said and grabbed the Star Shard from her pouch.

"Okay Star Shard… my brother isn't here… so take me to the next one!" Hikari shouted, holding the Star Shard above her head.

The brunette was covered in light before the Star Shard shot up, taking the holder to another world.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Sora huffed tiredly as he faced the Trickmaster. He was tired from running all around the world. First after he found the Cheshire Cat and have evidence, he found out that Alice is missing! And now after running around the place, the Cheshire Cat tricked him to go to the Bizarre Room to fight this Heartless! Could this day get any worse?

"OUCH!" Sora screamed out when one of the fireballs burned his behind. Thankfully, it was quickly put out by Donald. The brunet rubbed his behind, his face scrunched up in pain. He glared at the Trickmaster and stood in a fighting stance. "I had enough of this guy!" he shouted angrily.

Sora ran towards the Trickmaster, jumping up to come face to face with the Heartless. He swung his keyblade a few times, hitting the Heartless on the head. He landed on the floor and dodge rolled away when the Trickmaster threw fireballs at him, Donald and Goofy.

The Cheshire Cat appeared beside Sora, grinning madly. "It seems that you are in dire need of assistance. Like brothers, like sister, I admit." He snapped his finger and Sora's keyblade glowed a bright blue color, surprising the boy. "It is but a pittance, but I shall grant you what strength in what you lack." He said.

Sora quickly pointed his keyblade at the Trickmaster and rays of blue shot out from the tip of the keyblade. The Trickmaster dodged Sora's attacks, resulting in some part of the room being frozen.

"Argh!" Sora huffed out in annoyance as he kept on missing the target.

"Sora! That was magic!" Donald quacked.

"A-hyuck! I didn't know you can do that!" Goofy said.

The three friends glanced over to the Cheshire Cat. "You are the one who is called 'the keyblade choosen one'. It will be a shame if you do not know how to use magic." He grinned.

"Look out!" Donald shouted and Sora dodged rolled away. He watched as Sora kept on firing the Blizzard spell at the Heartless, but he kept on missing. "Sora! You have to really focus on what you're tryin' to do!" he advised.

"Focus your heart! If you're gonna use magic with the keyblade, you have to be channelin' it on the bit!" Donald continued.

Sora glanced over to his keyblade and raise it up. He took a deep breath and aimed at the Trickmaster's head. The tip of the keyblade glowed a bright blue. "BLIZZARD!" He shouted and a ray of blue light was shot.

The ray completely hit the Trickmaster right on its head. The Heartless lost balance and it fell to the floor, shattered to pieces. A pink heart came out from the remains of the Heartless as it disappeared.

Sora, Donald and Goofy stared as the Trickmaster and the pink heart disappeared.

"We did it! Good job!" Both Donald and Goofy threw themselves at Sora, congratulating the boy for his success. The three jumped around in victory as this was the second big Heartless that they defeated together.

"Fuwaah! Dear lord what is all this racket?" The doorknob suddenly awakened, yawning loudly. The trio turned to face the doorknob. "Do me a favor and keep it down? This doorknob is trying to get some sleep." He said, his mouth wide open.

Donald furrowed his eyebrows at the doorknob. "Hey! What's with the attitude?! We just saved the day over here!" he fumed, stomping his foot on the floor.

Sora blinked when he spotted something in the doorknob's mouth. "A… keyhole?" he said outloud, an eyebrow raised. His keyblade suddenly moved on its own, pointing directly at the keyhole inside the doorknob's mouth. A ray of light was shot from the tip of the keyblade and it hit the keyhole. It was a few seconds later that the light disappeared. "What was that?" he said confusedly, staring at the keyblade.

"Somethin' like a click wasn't it?" Donald asked.

Goofy picked up a piece that fell on the floor. "A-hyuck! What's this? A gummi block?" he asked, staring at the small piece of block. "But it doesn't look like one…" he said, handing it over to Donald.

"Hmm you're right Goofy… haven't seen one like it…" Donald admitted, staring at the small piece of gummi block.

The Cheshire Cat clapped. "Superb performance, boy." He said, appearing high on the table. "That was an excellent show of blooming your powers. Keep it up and someday you might even be a florist!" he grinned widely.

Sora narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the cat. "Earlier… you mentioned 'like brothers, like sisters'… you were referring to Hikari!" he shouted, pointing his finger accusingly at the Cheshire Cat. He, Donald and Goofy stood in a fighting stance. "Where is she?! Are you holding her hostage?!" he demanded, narrowing his keyblade at the purple cat.

"Oh dear, oh dear… it seems that you have misunderstood." The Cheshire Cat said, propping his head up. "She did, in fact, came to this world to look for something that she lost."

Sora's eyes widened. On one side he was happy that his sister is also really looking for him, but the other…he was worried that this cat has something to do with it.

"She fought the monsters by herself to protect the light in Alice." The cat continued.

"What?! She fought that thing on her own?!" Sora screamed, his hands in his hand. He panicked. It took him awhile to take down the Heartless with three people, but one?! She could've been seriously injured. "How did she do? Is she okay?"

The purple cat grinned even wider. "But alas… she did not heed my warning." The Cheshire Cat said, trying to sound disappointed. Sora's heart almost stopped. He feared that something bad happened to Hikari when he heard that she didn't pay attention to Cheshire Cat's warnings. He gulped and waited for the cat to continue. "She did indeed saved Alice from the Queen's rage, but she did not save her from the shadows that crawled into this world." The cat continued.

"What do you mean?" Donald asked.

"Alice is neither here or there… she has passed to another world I cannot speak. She has fallen to the darkness of obscurity." The cat explained in a riddle.

"And Hikari? Is she okay?" Sora questioned, worry in his tone.

The grinning cat stared at the keyblade wielder, "She too has passed to another world to find what she seeks the most." He said as he disappeared.

Sora sighed in relief. "That means she's okay and in another world…right?" he asked his two friends.

"Seems like it." Goofy nodded.

"I'm glad…"

* * *

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"That wretched cat… he got a loose tongue. He should have been disposed when he first refused our goodwill!" a man huffed, staring at the projection of Sora, Donald and Goofy.

The second figure scoffed at the man's rage. "It a bit too late for that, but the boy though…" he said as he inspected his nails. His hair lighted up the area around him in a blue tinged light. "He found the keyhole a whole lot faster than we expected. Can't really judge a book by the cover, huh?" He added.

Another figure slammed his hooked hand to the table. "Blast that wretched boy! We should dispose of him!" he shouted angrily.

"The boy? The keyholes are not easy to find. We should worry about the girl! She almost foiled our plans!" a woman shouted angrily.

"Indeed," another female spoke, entering the band of villains. "The girl has proven that she has become quite a hassle for us, but we were lucky." She continued as a hologram of Hikari appeared.

"The pieces we seek have already begun to assemble on the board." The woman added as a cage-like Heartless came to view. The Heartless held a blonde girl hostage inside.

"Let me out! I know for sure Sora and Hikari are going to put you lot in your places!" The girl shouted from inside. With a wave of the horned woman's hand, the Heartless left the room with the girl.

"Finally! Some peace!" The man with flames for hair thanked. "Just leave it to me, that pipsqueak won't stand a chance in my Underworld. In a matter of minutes, she would be done for!"

"No, she has proven her strength in the arts of magic." The woman said, staring at the image of Hikari using her rod to kill a few Heartless. She moved her hand and beside the hologram of the brunette is her very own brother with his two friends. A smirk made its way to her lips when she noticed the link between the boy and the girl.

"In fact, she could be quite useful to us."

* * *

A/N: That's the end of chapter four! I hope you guys like it!

The time line is:  
When Hikari left Traverse Town, Sora just defeated the Heartless  
When Hikari arrived, meet Alice and came to face the Trickmaster, Sora came and finds Alice in the court  
When Hikari defeated the Trickmaster and went to rescue Alice from the Queen, Sora was looking for the clues and came back to find Alice is gone  
When Hikari left, Sora defeated the Trickmaster.

Special thanks for AnimeQueen82 for adding this story to their favs and alert!

Leave a review and tell me what you guys think about it!


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: A new chapter! Thank you so much for everyone who read, reviewed, faved and followed this story!

Special thanks to CowardlyBravette for adding this story to his/her favs and alerts!

Guest: thank you!

BlueXRedKnight: thank you! And here's the next chapter!

Lulu9814: Awww thank you so much!

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

Hikari © me

* * *

Chapter 5: Bitter Reunion

"How was that, Phil? How did I do today?"

"You did great today, Herc!" The tiny man cheered from the sidelines, a bright look on his face. He gave Hercules a canteen of water and tossed him a towel to dry his face off. He stood on the bench as Hercules sat on it. The tiny man nudged Hercules' shoulder a few times, the bright look never leaving his face. "You should save your energy! Nobody wants to pay up and see a worn out hero, right?" he said.

Hercules laughed. "I guess so."

Phil accompanied Hercules out from the coliseum gates. "Now remember, Herc. Get a long rest and a good night sleep! And also don't forget to do your daily morning 1000 push-ups!" he chided, just like how a mother would do.

The ginger-haired man waved his hand, telling his trainer that he understood.

Phil smiled, his hands on his hips. He stared at Hercules as the young man continue to walk down the stairs from the coliseum. The satyr turned around and walked straight back to the coliseum's lobby. "I have a good feelin' 'bout this month's games." He said to himself with a proud look on his grumpy face.

The satyr glanced up to the clear sky when he felt something was amiss. "What in the name of Zeus? What is that?" he squinted his eyes when something, most likely an object sent by the Gods themselves, zig-zagged across the sky. His eyes widened when the shooting star was headed straight for him. "Yikes!"

He tried to outrun the shooting star, but failed when the shooting star landed on him. Turns out, it wasn't a shooting star or an object from Zeus, it was a girl that fell from the sky.

Hikari groaned when she landed on the ground. She was expecting a hard landing like she did in the previous world, but this time, it didn't hurt like before. "Huh? It's not as painful as before?" she said out loud.

"That's because you landed on me!" Phil complained from beneath the brunette.

Hikari quickly stood up and helped the man up to his feet. "Sorry! I didn't mean to—," her eyes widened when she saw a half man and half goat lying flat on his stomach. She watched as he stood up, a frown on his face as he dusted himself off. She squinted her eyes and she leaned closer to inspect the man if he was real of not. "Are you some sort of half man half goat or something? Or are you a horse?" she asked.

"I'm a satyr for your information! And the name's Phil! You got that?" the tiny man glared at Hikari, crossing his arms over his chest.

The brunette backed off, her hands raised in defeat. "Sorry! Just curious and all…" she cleared her throat awkwardly, glancing around her surroundings. The place was ancient looking. White columns everywhere and large gladiator statues by the gates. It almost feels like she was in an ancient time. "Phil, right? By any chance did someone came here before me?" she asked, turning to face the satyr.

"A lot of people came here, kid." Phil replied. "If you're one of Herc's fans then sorry, he just left."

Hikari shook her head. "Um no, no… I was actually looking for someone else. My parents, Sora, Riku, Kairi—,"

"Whoa, whoa, kid, kid! Are you trying to find a lost village or something?" Phil positioned his arms in an X, telling Hikari that he doesn't know a single person of her family or her friends. Sure, he helps a few people who lost someone over the past few years, but this kid was just impossible! It sounded like she was the one who's lost and not her family or her friends. "Look, as far as I know, no one other than you came here, okay?"

The brunette sighed from her mouth in disappointment. _'This is gonna be harder than I thought…'_ she thought. Finding Sora and everyone else is not as easy as it seems. She could've waited back at Traverse Town. Safe and sound in the world for refugee while her family and friends are lost in other unknown worlds. She just had to leave and try to find them. "Thanks by the way." She thanked the satyr.

Phil shrugged. "You're welcome, Kid." He turned his back and walked towards the gates to the coliseum.

Hikari scratched the back of her neck, trying to think what she should do next. Her eyes caught the writings written on the large board, hanging over the coliseum's walls. "Hey Phil… what's this about?" she shouted to the man, pointing at the writings.

Phil turned around and glanced over to the thing she was pointing at. "That's the list of the matches here. Interested to buy a ticket to watch?" he shouted back.

Hikari hummed and spotted a few slots that were not filled. _'Might as well try while I'm here… who knows maybe if I wait long enough, Sora or anyone might come here too.'_ She walked closer to the satyr, who was patiently waiting for her reply. "Hey, I was wondering if I can join the games too." She grinned.

Phil blinked a few times. "You're… joking, right?" he suddenly burst out laughing. The brunette looked offended by the sudden outburst. All she said was that she wanted to try and join the matches. It can't be that funny now, can it? The tiny man placed his hand on his knee for support as he wiped the tears from the corner of his eyes. "Kid, this is a game for heroes only. I got my hands full preparing for it!" he said.

Hikari puffed out her cheeks childishly. "What? No way… anyone can join, right? Is it because I'm a girl? Well I'm gonna prove that I'll be the first ever girl to win this game!" she pumped her fist up in the air, determined to prove this man wrong.

"Sorry. That title has been taken a decade ago." Phil said, raining on her parade.

"Aw c'mon! You let her play the games! Why can't you let me in too?" Hikari whined, trying to convinced Phil to let her enter the games. Now she _has_ to join the game. She'll never give up until this man lets her in. "I have some skills too! I can do magic and stuff!" She summoned her rod to prove her point.

Phil placed a hand on his chin, stroking his beard. "Hmm… nope." He said without a second thought. Hikari kept on whining, hoping that he would understand her determination. "Listen, kiddo, everyone thinks they got what it takes to be a hero, but it's more than just muscles and brain. You gotta have heart and care about people. That's what makes you a true hero." He explained.

Hikari groaned. It was impossible to convince this man.

"Just give up…" the two of them stopped their bickering when someone interrupted. A young man was by the lobby's entrance, leaning against the column. His eyes were narrowed and his arms were crossed. He averted his sharp blue eyes to look at Hikari, staring her down. He pushed himself off and walked past Hikari and Phil, not even looking back. "There's no point for you to join the tournament." He said.

"Huh? Hey what do you mean by that?" Hikari placed a hand on her hip as her other hand held the rod.

"You'll lose anyway. Why not save the dignity you have left?" The blond said.

"Hey!" Hikari shouted.

Phil nodded his head in agreement. "Finally! Someone who understands me!" he said in triumph.

"No matter what you teach her, it's worthless." The young man continued.

Phil suddenly froze. "Oh. So now you're saying that I don't have what it takes to teach a pipsqueak like her to be a hero?" he crossed his arms, ignoring Hikari's shout of complaint. He turned to face the brunette and furrowed his eyebrows. "New plan, kid! I'm going to teach you to be one of the best heroes the world has ever seen!"

"No way! Really?! YES! I'm going to kick your butt and prove you wrong!" Hikari threw her hands up in the air and flashed a smirk at the blond man's way.

The blond man glanced over his shoulder and closed his eyes. "Not interested." He walked away after that.

Hikari stared, flabbergasted at the blond man's blatant reply.

"C'mon kid! We don't have all day! If you want to defeat that shady guy, you have to train asap! The next tournament is in two days!" Phil shouted as he entered the lobby.

"Two days? Isn't that a bit too sudden?" Hikari questioned, following the satyr inside the building.

Phil looked back. "Why? You're not thinking of backing now, are you?" he asked and received a bold 'no way' from the girl. He climbed up to one of the pedestal and began to write something on the broad with chalk. "Here's how it is, the games are divided into two brackets—the East and the West. The winners from each bracket faced off in the championship match. I'm signing you up for the West since I got some spoilers that the sore loser is competing in the West." He explained and tapped the chalk on the board.

Hikari nodded.

"Name?" Phil questioned.

"Hikari at your service!" the brunette saluted.

Phil nodded and wrote her name on the West bracket's list. "In two days, we have the West bracket and the day after that is the East." he jumped down from the pedestal and cracked his knuckles. He placed his hands on his hips as he scrutinized the brunette up and down over and over again. "You said you have skills, right?" he pointed his finger at her.

"Of course!" Hikari twirled the rod in her hand.

Phil hummed. "We have to work with what we have… I think you can avoid his attacks with your noodle legs."

Hikari took a deep breath. She wasn't going to complain.

"Alright! Let's start your Phil's super special training!"

"Yeah!"

"Now drop and give me a hundred!"

"Yeah! Wait—what!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Sora glanced out from the window of the gummi ship. "We didn't find anyone. Hikari left the world before we did and Alice is gone too…" he sighed deeply. He was bummed at the fact that he didn't find anyone and he missed Hikari because he wasn't fast enough. He slumped in his seat and another sigh escaped his lips.

Suddenly someone pinched the both of his cheeks.

"Aw!"

"A-hyuck! Don't worry Sora! We'll find them!" Goofy smiled.

"Yeah! There are many worlds out there, so don't worry about it!" Donald nodded his head in agreement. "I realize today that our mission is important!"

Sora and Goofy stared at the duck, waiting for him to continue.

"But… I also realize that family is important too." Donald said, his head lowered a little. "Kind of makes me want to visit Traverse Town and check on my nephews." He suddenly said.

"Then let's go to Traverse Town! I want to check if Hikari came back or not!" Sora said, his mood already brightened because of Donald's words. He appeared beside Donald, staring at the buttons and the steering wheel. "Hey, can I drive?" he asked, placing his hands on the wheel.

"No way! You're going to crash us to a world or something!"

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"You crashed us into a freaking meteorite! You're never ever driving again!"

"You're the one who jinxed us first." Sora retorted. He glanced around the quaint and calm town. Nothing seems to change from when he first visited the world. He spotted a familiar black haired ninja walking out from the accessory shop. "Hey Yuffie! Over here!" he flailed his hand to the girl.

"Oh! Sora and co.! Welcome back! Did 'ya guys find something interesting for us?" Yuffie jogged towards the trio.

The three of them glanced at each other, nodding. "Yeah we found something and we were wondering if you can take us to Leon." Sora said.

Yuffie hummed. "At this time, he might be over his 'secret' training place. C'mon, I'll show you the way." She motioned her hand for Sora, Donald and Goofy to follow her. She guided them towards the second floor of the first district and into the alleys.

"Hey Yuffie… Did Hikari come back here?" Sora suddenly asked as they went into the sewers of Traverse Town.

Yuffie shook her head. "No, sorry, not that I'm aware of… but I'm sure Merlin can help you."

"Merlin?" Sora, Donald and Goofy echoed.

"Yeah. Merlin the wizard! I heard that he taught someone new a day or two ago." Yuffie tapped her chin, thinking back to the conversation Merlin and Cid had a day or two days ago. She saw the hopeful expression Sora was giving and laughed. "You can ask Merlin yourself when he gets back from his 'journey'." She said.

"Hey Squall! Someone's here to see you!" Yuffie shouted and said man turned to face the girl.

"It's Leon." Leon corrected. His eyes drifted from Yuffie to Sora. He sat on the ground and motioned for them to do the same. The man listened to Sora's explanation about the keyblade acting by itself when a keyhole appeared. "So you found the keyhole." He mumbled.

"A keyhole?"

"It is said that in every world amongst the stars, a keyhole is obscured. Beyond each keyhole lies the 'Heart' of the world. No heart escapes from the taint of darkness. The Heartless reside in that taint. They consume and manifest the hearts of all kind." Leon explained. He raised his hand and pointed his finger at the keyblade Sora was holding.

"Which is why you're wielding that key. The hearts of the remaining worlds must be locked. You're the only one who can do it, Sora." Leon said and Sora raised his keyblade to stare at it. "You're the keyblade's chosen one."

Sora frowned. "That's a lot of responsibility to carry…" he mumbled under his breath.

"Don't worry, Sora. I'm sure you can do it." Aerith spoke from behind the brunet.

"Miss Aerith!" Goofy exclaimed, turning to face the woman.

"I talked to Cid about fixing your gummi ship. He said that it might take some time to fix the damage." Aerith said, smiling.

Donald glared at Sora, his arms crossed.

Sora shrugged. "I said I was sorry!" he crossed his arms, a pout on his lips. "Speaking of gummi ships… we found this. Do you know what is it?" he pulled out the gummi block from his pocket, showing it to Leon, Aerith and Yuffie.

"Maybe you should ask Cid! He's an expert on those things." Yuffie chirped.

Sora nodded his head. "Great idea! Thanks!"

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Gawrsh… are you sure this is the place? It looks empty…"

"Cid said it was behind a wall with a fire emblem on it…"

Sora glanced around the dark and musty place.

" _This place kind of reminds me of the secret place back in the island, isn't that right Sora?"_

"Huh?" Sora rubbed his eyes as a vision of Kairi was seen in front of him. He blinked a few times and Kairi was gone. "What was that about?" he asked.

"You arrived sooner than I expected!" a voice startled him. The brunet turned around to see an old man walking inside the room, holding a bag. He watched as the old man continued his merry way to the middle of the room. He placed his bag on the floor and opened it. The room was suddenly filled with smoke, making the trio cough. As soon as the smoke cleared, their eyes widened at the sight of the messy room. It was empty and dusty. Not it was messy and dusty. "Sorry for the mess… as you can see, I move around a lot." He said, sitting down on a chair.

"Are you… Merlin?" Donald asked, pointing his finger.

"Jolly goodness, yes I am!" Merlin laughed. "Your king told me to teach the key some magic and teach you magic I shall!"

Suddenly Merlin squinted his eyes at Sora. "Hikari? Is that you? Goodness you've changed a lot since the last time I've seen you! It's only been two days perhaps? I see you've been perfecting your disguise magic. Good for you, my dear." He nodded his head, a proud look on his face.

Sora blinked confusedly. "I think you've mistaken, uh sir… My name's Sora and—wait… did you say Hikari?" he paused mid-sentence and the wizard nodded his head. "Y-You met her?! Can you tell me where she is now? I'm Sora, her brother!"

"You're her brother? Well, I do see the resemblance…" Merlin pushed his glasses to the bridge of his nose and motioned his hand for the trio to take a seat. He snapped his fingers and a few plates of snacks and three cups of tea appeared right before their eyes. "She was my previous student before you. You see, she was found by Fairy Godmother and we offered to teach her some magic before she goes out looking for her family and friends." He explained, taking a sip from his drink.

"Do you think you know where she is now?" Sora asked hopefully.

"I sorry, my dear boy… She left a few days ago and hasn't return." Merlin said and Sora sighed heavily. "If I had known, I would tell her to stay here…"

Sora shook his head. "It's okay… I mean, Hikari's not the type to sit still and wait. She can't even wait three-minutes for instant noodles." He joked.

Donald placed a hand on Sora's shoulder. "At least we know that she can do spells and defend herself." He tried to cheer the boy up.

"Yeah! And the Cheshire Cat did say that she defeated that Heartless all by herself! So we know now that she can take care of herself." Goofy smiled.

Sora laughed. "Thanks guys." He glanced over to his friends before turning to Merlin. "Can you teach me magic too?" he questioned.

"Of course, my dear boy! That's why I'm for!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"C'mon kid! You still have three more laps to go!" Phil shouted, encouraging for Hikari to move forward.

Hikari huffed and puffed, trying to catch her breath. She stopped for a brief moment and placed her hands on her knees for support. She wiped the sweat off her forehead before tying her hair into a low ponytail. The girl continued her laps. This was just like competing with Sora and Riku back at the islands. They mainly run from one end to the other, but it was still running. The only time she won was because of default because Sora and Riku got a little sidetracked by the waves. Translation, both of them ran too near the shores and Sora tripped, taking Riku down with him.

"Great job, kid! You finished fifty laps around the coliseum!" Phil congratulated as he leaned over Hikari's face, his head hovering above her. She laid tiredly on her back, sweating like a waterfall. "I say, you're tougher than you look! I didn't expect you to finish my list at all and look at you! You're becoming more and more like a hero in every minute I taught you!" he laughed.

Hikari gave him a tired grin. "What can I say… I am pretty set on kicking that stuck-up snob back to where he came from." She sat up and accepted the towel Phil gave her.

"Take five, kid. You deserve it. Go rest while I set up the next training equipment for you." Phil said, waving his hand. He walked away as he began to write a few things in his checkboard. "You can browse around the coliseum, but after the five-minute break is up, it's fifty more sit ups alright?!" he shouted, giving Hikari the stink eye.

The brunette gave a salute as she watched the man walked out of the coliseum. She decided to enjoy the five-minute break Phil gave her. She laid back on the ground, staring at the blue sky.

"Why are you so persistent on winning this tournament?" A voice startled her from behind. She quickly stood up and turned around to face the man who appeared so suddenly. She frowned when she found out that the man was from before. "What will you gain from winning it?" the young man asked again.

"Well the victory of kicking your butt of course! No one makes fun of this girl and gets away with it!" Hikari jabbed a thumb to herself, giving the blond man a smug look. She placed her hand on her chest and smiled. "Phil puts his trust in me to defeat you in the West bracket and I'll win it for sure! For him and for me!" she shouted, a determined look on her face.

The blond man sighed. "I'm not going to let you win… I will be the one who will fight Hercules in the end of this tournament." He said, walking past Hikari.

Hikari turned around to face the blond man's back. "What makes you so sure that you'll win this tournament? For all I know, I might be one who will fight Hercules." She crossed her arms, glaring at the blond man's head.

The blond man stopped walking. He glanced over his shoulder. "I'm… looking for someone and the only way I could find him is by winning this tournament." He replied and continued his way out of the coliseum. On his way out, he passed the satyr—who gave him looks as he made his way to Hikari while walking backwards.

"Geez! That guy sure is shady! Let me tell you something kid. You need to be careful around shady people like him… you don't know what they might be thinking in their brain of theirs." Phil shook his head, glaring at the man's back.

Hikari stared at the coliseum's exit.

"Don't worry, kid. His ego will be the end of him! You'll win for sure!" Phil slapped Hikari's back, giving encouragement to the girl. "Now give me fifty sit ups!" he ordered.

"Okay! Okay!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Come back anytime soon if you wish to practice more magic."

Sora nodded his head. "We will! Oh and if you happen to find Hikari again, can you _please_ tell her to stay put this time?"

"Will do."

Sora, Donald and Goofy went back to the third district with Donald grumbling about finding lost items instead of finding the King and Sora's friends and family. Their request list did pile up a little. Starting with finding the Ansem Reports to the missing pages of a world.

Sora took a deep breath and sighed loudly from his mouth.

"Argh! Hey!"

He was taken by surprise when a Heartless jumped on his back. He summoned his keyblade and tried to swing it around to hit the Heartless on his back, but failed. Suddenly, the weight on his back disappeared in a flash.

"C'mon Sora… I thought I taught you better than this."

' _That smug tone… I know that anywhere!'_ Sora turned around and just as he guessed. "Riku!" he shouted in pure joy.

Riku smirked as he rested the keyblade on his shoulder. "I've been looking all over for you, Sora. You don't know how much trouble I went through just to find you."

"Riku!" Sora cried out as he ran to his best friend. He pinched the both of Riku's cheeks, stretching them as far as he can.

"Oi! What do you think you're doing?! That hurts, you idiot!" Riku shouted as he pushed Sora off of him.

Sora really couldn't be more happy. "It really is you!" He wiped the tears away from the corner of his eyes. "Is Kairi with you?" he asked, glancing around.

Riku shook his head. "No… I thought she was with you. What about Hikari?"

"No… I can't find her either…"

The silver-haired teen sighed before placing his hand on Sora's shoulder, making him look up. "Think of it this way… we finally traveled to the outside world. We're free to go to anywhere we want and there's no one to stop us. I'm sure with you around now, we can find both Kairi and Hikari." He said, a smile on his lips.

"Just don't worry, I'll handle—,!" Riku stopped when Sora swung his keyblade. His emerald eyes looked over his shoulder and spotted a Heartless that was disappeared from Sora's hit. "Sora when did you?"

"Pretty cool, huh? I've been practicing a lot with this thing!" Sora showed Riku his keyblade. He glanced back to Donald and Goofy. "I've been with these guys all along! They're really cool!" he exclaimed.

Riku held the keyblade that was in Sora's hand. It appeared in his hand the moment Sora showed it to him. "So this is the keyblade that I've been hearing about…" he mumbled under his breath, inspecting the gold and silver colored key. "Here you can have it back." He tosses the keyblade back to Sora.

"Huh?" Sora caught the keyblade, staring at it for a moment before summoning it away. "Oh yeah! You're coming with us, right Riku? It'll be awesome to have you join our party!" he grinned happily, wrapping his arms around Donald and Goofy's shoulders.

Donald wriggled out from Sora's grasp. "Wak! You can't just decide on your own!" he yelled angrily, jumping up and down to prove it.

"Aw c'mon Donald! Riku's my friend and—huh? He's gone!"

Above them, Riku glanced down at Sora and his new friends with jealousy. He never saw it coming. His best friend has abandoned him. He never knew Sora was the type to abandon his best friend for some new friends. Now he really feels that Sora will abandon both Kairi and Hikari for new friends as well. His frown deepened and his eyes narrowed when a hand touched his shoulder.

"It is just as I told you, my dear. While you toiled away finding your friends, he ends up replacing you with new companions. And now he values them more than you." The woman spoke.

The woman opened a portal behind her and guided the silver-haired boy inside. "Worry not of that wretched boy anymore, my child. Come with me and I shall help you find what you seek." She said.

Riku glanced over one last time to look at Sora. He scoffed before entering the portal first. _'Goodbye Sora. I hope you enjoy your new friends.'_

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari took a deep breath. Today's the day. Today's the day of the West bracket's games.

Cheers were heard from the empty bleachers. It kind of amazed her that the spectators are all invincible. That or this whole battle arena is rigged with a recording of cheering crowds. She sat on the bench, staring at her opponent who was sitting on the bench across from her.

The blond man—Cloud, already finished his fair share of rounds earlier when she was doing a last minute training with Phil in the waiting room.

"This is it, kid! Do your best!" Phil massaged Hikari's stiff shoulders, giving her a few pointers here and there. "All you have to do is win your match, and you and Cloud will face each other off to take the West championship!" he jumped down from the bench, his hands on his hips.

Hikari nodded her head.

"Now get out there and win this!" Phil shouted and the crowd cheered louder when Hikari entered the battle arena.

The brunette summoned her rod and stood in a fighting stance. _'I can win this! I just need to fight a few dudes in togas and bam! It's me vs Cloud!'_ she thought, tightening her grip on her rod. Her eyes flickered around the arena, trying to find her opponent. There were no signs of anyone going up to the arena. She breaks her stance and stood up, scratching her back of her head confusedly. _'Come to think of it… where's my opponent anyway?'_ she turned back to Phil.

"Hey, Phil—!" Hikari paused mid-sentence when a large ball-like shadow overwhelmed her. She tilted her head up and her eyes widened. She jumped away in the nick of time. She dodge-rolled to safety and stared at the Heartless that appeared from the sky. "Heartless?!" she exclaimed in surprise. She was expecting warriors, not Heartless.

"Focus, kid!" Phil shouted from the sidelines.

Hikari quickly casted a shield when the small Heartless threw fireballs at her. She huffed and threw her rod at the lesser Heartless. The rod spun around, eliminating the floating Heartless. After the one round, the rod returned back to her hand like a boomerang. She pointed her rod at the fat Heartless, casting Thunder. A flash of lightning zapped the Heartless and it disappeared in black smoke, leaving the arena empty again.

The crowd cheered loudly.

"Way to go, kid! You won the first round!" Phil cheered.

The brunette grinned. "Oh yeah! First place here I come!" she pumped her fist up.

"I don't mean to rain on your parade, but here comes the second round!" The satyr yelled, pointing his finger for Hikari to turn around.

Heartless began to appear one by one. Each stronger and bigger than the last. The brunette dashed to the Heartless. She used her rod as a sword, slashing and hitting the black creatures. She stopped for a brief moment to jump away from one of the Heartless' attack. She attacked the winged Heartless first, since she was already in the air. She shot Blizzard at her opponent and gave a good whack. She landed on the ground and somersaulted away when a Heartless lunged at her.

"Good job, kid! Try using the new spell I taught you!" Phil shouted.

Hikari nodded. "Sleep!" she exclaimed, casting the new spell. The Heartless around her fell into sleep, their body limp and their head hung low. She raised her rod and cast Aero. The Heartless were swallowed up to a small vortex. She pointed her rod at the small tornado, a smug grin on her face. "Thunder!" the lightning strikes the Heartless inside the tornado, killing them off.

"C'mon kid! A few more rounds to go!"

And a few more round it is. Hikari panted when she finished defeating the Heartless from the ninth round. She stepped out from the battle arena and sat on the bench tiredly. Phil poured water over her head and gave her some water to drink.

Hikari groaned. "Man… I never knew fighting nine rounds in a row would be this tiring!" she complaint before drinking her water.

"This is the moment we're waiting for, kid! Next round is Cloud!" Phil slapped a towel over Hikari's face.

"Cloud already?!" Hikari sprang up, the tired feeling she had before was gone at the mention of her next opponent's name.

Phil laughed. "That's the spirit! Now go out there and prove him wrong!"

The brunette quickly made her way up to the arena. She stood in the battle arena, facing Cloud. She readied her rod as Cloud held his large sword.

"Give up now while there's still time." Cloud said.

"No way! I'll show you what I'm capable of!" Hikari shouted.

Cloud closed his eyes. "Very well… don't come crying when this is all over." He said before he lunged at Hikari, his sword ready to attack.

Cloud swing his giant blade at Hikari. The girl quickly ducked down and jumped over Cloud's head when he slammed the sword down to the ground. She landed behind him and casted Blizzard. Cloud blocked the blocks of ice with his sword, the width of his sword providing him some shelter from the raid of ice blocks. He dashed forward when the spell stopped. Hikari kept on backing away and dodging Cloud's powerful and dangerous swings.

Hikari brought her rod up to the side of her head when she didn't have time to duck down from the attack. The sword collided with her rod. She held the rod with both of her hands as she tried to push back Cloud's sword from her head. She reached her hand out and tried to keep her rod steady.

"Blizzard!" Hikari yelled and a burst of ice came out from her palm and hit Cloud's shoulder. He was lucky that she didn't aim at his face. Cloud released the handle of his sword and he backed away to a safe distance, leaving his sword behind. The large sword collided on the floor with a loud thud. The brunette panted as she stared at Cloud's frozen armor.

Cloud glanced over to his frozen shoulder plate. "Not bad… I underestimated you." He said, breaking the silence between them.

Hikari grinned and twirled her rod. "You ain't seeing nothing yet!" she shouted, placing her rod on her belt. She grabbed Cloud's sword and tried to lift it up. "Oh man! This thing is really heavy!" she grunted as she finally has a good hold of the sword.

Cloud dashed towards her. Hikari tried using the sword to beat Cloud at his own game, but failed as she only managed to swing twice. The last swing was powerful enough to actually break the floor, sticking the sword in place. Cloud sidestepped from the attack and swung his foot to Hikari's face.

Hikari ducked down, avoiding Cloud's boot. She balled up her hand to a fist and draw back her arm. She tried to punch Cloud, but failed when he kept on dodging. She tried to leg sweep the man and he jumped up. Hikari did a reverse somersault when Cloud stuck down.

The brunette stood in a distance. She took out her rod from her belt and narrowed it at the blond man. "Sleep!" she shouted.

"Kid! The spell doesn't work if you're not face to face!" Phil warned, yanking his own hair in frustration.

"What?! Why didn't you tell me when you were teaching me?!" Hikari shouted at the satyr.

"It slipped my mind, okay?!" Phil yelled. "Duck!"

Hikari ducked, just like Phil instructed, avoiding Cloud's sword. A second too late and it was bye-bye head. The young mage in training pointed her rod at Cloud, ready to cast another spell. Cloud quickly strike. He knocked the rod out of her hand and pointed the tip of his sword at her neck.

"It's over." Cloud said, staring the brunette down.

Hikari raised her hands in defeat. "Alright! Uncle! Uncle!"

Cloud took back his sword and turned around when he was announced the winner of the West bracket.

"Hey Cloud!" said man stopped in his tracks and glanced over his shoulder to look at the girl who shouted his name. He spotted the brunette looking straight at him. "Congratulations!"

The blond nodded.

"I hope you find the person you're looking for!" Hikari grinned, giving him a thumbs up.

Cloud's eyes widened for a brief moment. He turned his head back and continued his way out of the coliseum.

Phil came running to the brunette, who was still in the arena, sitting. He took her rod and came back to her. "Kid! You okay there? That was some match you two put up!" he said, standing beside her. The girl nodded in agreement and took her rod back. She summoned away her rod, a slightly disappointed look on her face. "Aw c'mon kid… don't give me that look. We might've lost, but you did great out there! And to prove it, I'm giving you this!" he slapped something to her hand.

Hikari blinked and stared down at the object. It was a small gold coin with a symbol of a thunder bolt on it.

"I dub thee worthy enough to train under me! Yeah, you heard me right! From today's performance, I can see that you have potential!" Phil smiled.

"Wow… this is awesome! Thanks Phil!" Hikari grinned, clutching on the gold coin. She turned to face the satyr, a smile on her face. "But I think you'll have to put the training on hold… I have to find my brother first." She said.

Phil nodded his head in understanding. "Yeah… I know. Family always comes first. Try to come back for the next tournament, will 'ya?"

Hikari nodded her head. "I'll try. See you later Phil! And thanks for everything!" she waved her hand goodbye when Phil escorted her out of the coliseum.

The satyr waved his hand back and went back inside the coliseum.

The brunette moved her hand to her pouch to grab the Star Shard.

"Well, that was a very nice show you put up."

Hikari jumped at the sudden voice. She turned around and found a man with blue skin and blue fire for hair. He stood by the entrance to the coliseum, inspecting his nail as he walked down the stairs.

"Who are you?" Hikari asked as she summoned her rod, standing in a fighting stance.

The man held his hands up. "Whoa there! I'm not here to bring trouble. I'm just here to congratulate of the show you put up." He said as he kept on walking. Hikari raised an eyebrow at him, not letting her guard down. She remembered Phil's advice to never listen to a shady person and this guy reeks of shadiness. "The name's Hades. You know, ruler of the underworld and all that." He introduced himself.

"Hikari…" the brunette introduced, still suspicious of the man before her.

Hades placed a hand on his chin, thinking. "You know what? That look. That look you're giving… I've seen it somewhere." He tapped his temple and pondered back and forth.

The brunette awkwardly averted her eyes, trying to figure out what the man was thinking. Phil was right, shady people are hard to guess.

Hades snapped his fingers. "Oh! I remember now! A boy with the same suspicious look. He was giving me that look when I first met him!" he laughed and began to ponder again. "What was his name again? It's on the tip of my tongue….Biku? Dimu? Ripu?—,"

"Riku?!" Hikari exclaimed, correcting Hades all together.

"Ah yes! That's the name! Riku! Riku… ah that boy." Hades crossed his arms.

"Do you know where he is now?" Hikari asked.

"Him? He's in the underworld, training his powers. Duh." Hades said, turning around. A smirk grew on his face as Hikari was suddenly interested when he mentioned the boy's name. He suddenly turned around, his smirk now gone. He walked closer to the girl and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Hey, how about I take you there to see him? After all, I do feel a lot generous today." He guided her to the wall of the gates and snapped his fingers and a portal appeared.

"What's the catch?" Hikari asked suspiciously.

Hades hummed. "Well, nothing really… think of it as a reward for standing up to that spiky-haired ingrate." He smiled, pushing the brunette inside to enter the underworld. As soon as they stepped out of the portal, the scene changed to his foyer. The lord of the dead walked towards his throne as Hikari was left gawking at the change of scenery. "Welcome to the underworld, Hikari." He said, sitting on his throne.

Hikari blinked. "You know my name?"

"Of course! I know everyone's name!" Hades said, raising his hands up.

The brunette glanced around the dark place. It was cold and dark and spooky. "So where's Riku?" she asked, trying to ignore the feeling of being watched.

Hades waved his hand and a glass appeared in his hand. "Don't know. He was here when I left. He must've gone exploring my kingdom." He took a sip from his drink.

Hikari glanced out the hole on the wall and took a deep breath. "If you don't mind… I'm going to search for Riku." She said, turning around to head towards the door.

"I need to remind you, kid! Humans don't last long in the underworld unless you can control the darkness!" She heard Hades' shout right before the door to the foyer closed.

Hikari sighed and glanced around the area. It was foggy and humid. The air felt cold in the underworld. She walked cautiously, her rod in hand. She turned her head left and right as she felt quite uneasy in a place like this.

"This is so creepy…" Hikari mumbled. She turned her head to face front, but was surprised when she met a ghostly Heartless. She screamed in surprise and jumped back a few feet to avoid the ghost's claws. She pointed her rod at the ghost Heartless, a glare flashed at it because it scared the living heck out of her. "Fire!" she casted and a blast of fire was shot from her rod and it hit the ghost.

"I hate this place already! C'mon Riku! Where are you?" Hikari glanced around, trying to find her silver-haired friend. She really wants to find Riku and get the heck out of this place as quickly as possible.

A hand grabbed her shoulder.

Out of reflex and feelings, she screamed, slapped the hand away and turned around. She closed her eyes tightly and swung her rod blindly. Her aim wasn't off. It didn't hit the Heartless or anyone for that matter. It was stopped to be more precise.

"Geez, Hikari… still can't get rid of your fear of ghosts?"

Hikari snapped her eyes wide open.

Her blue eyes widened at the sight of a silver-haired boy standing before her.

"Riku?"

Riku smirked and released the rod that almost smacked him in the face.

"I've been looking all over for you, Hikari."

* * *

A/N: End of the chapter! Fuuh! That was long! I hope you guys like this one too!

After this… it's probably going to be mainly about Hikari's and Riku's story with a little bit of Sora here and there

Reviews are very much appreciated, and please no flames ^_^


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: A new chapter!

I was planning to make a manga version of this story, but… ehem… it actually took me months to work with 18 pages… so I decided to make a fic version instead.

Originally I planned to post the stories in chronological order from BBS to DDD. I do plan to.

I already made the comic version of BBS in my deviantart account. You guys can read it over there.

the series is called Kingdom Hearts: Little Adventures.

That's all, I hope you guys enjoy reading this chapter : D

Special thanks to flowerspring for adding this to their alerts!

Electricfiringlight: aww thank you so much!

BlueXRedKnight: yeah she finally found Riku ^^

Lulu9814: We'll find out some more things in this chapter *wink wink*

Guest: yeah Riku!

Guest: thank you so much!

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

Hikari © me

* * *

Chapter 6: Truth

"Riku…"

"I've been looking for you, Hikari."

Hikari stared at the silver-haired boy in front of her. He was the same as ever. The boy stood tall with a weird looking sword in his hand. His seafoam green eyes seem to stand out in the darkness of the underworld. And of course, what's a Riku without his signature smirk.

"Do you really have to swing that stick of yours at my face?" Riku asked, his eyes glancing over to the rod Hikari's holding. The brunette glanced over at her rod and summoned it away. "What would happen if I wasn't fast enough to block it?" he laughed jokingly, a hand on his hip.

"Are you…really Riku?" Hikari squinted her eyes to see better in the low light.

"Why don't you see for yourself?" Riku spread his arms out while holding the weird looking sword in one hand. Hikari inched forward. She started poking Riku's cheeks and then stretching them to maximum length. The silver-haired teen's eye twitched when he saw what Hikari was about to do next. "Alright, let's not get carried away… I know you were going to kick me in the shin." He pinched Hikari's cheek, stretching it.

"AW! It really is you!" Hikari threw herself to the boy, wrapping her arms around him in a tight embrace. She buried her face in his clothes, her shoulders shaking slightly. "I'm so glad I found you!"

"Geez, Hikari! Are you seriously crying? I didn't realize you missed me this much." Riku laughed, returning the hug with one arm around her shoulders.

"Shut up!" Hikari said, her voice a little muffled. She released her hold and took a step back. She brought her hand up and wiped the tears and snot away before tilting her head up to face him. "And I'm not crying! The fog's just playing a trick on you!" she denied, stomping her foot on the ground.

Riku laughed. "Alright, alright. You're not crying and the fog's playing tricks on me." He retreated, putting his hand up in defeat. Though the tear stains on his shirt says otherwise. He glanced around, his eyes moving to look at Hikari's left and right. "Kairi's not with you?" he suddenly asked.

Hikari shook her head. "No, I didn't find anyone. You're the first." She admitted. "How about Sora? Did you find him?" she asked, a frown on her face.

Riku narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "…no. I didn't find him." He lied. Around an hour ago, he did encounter Sora back in Traverse Town, but the brunet wasn't the same as he used to. He threw away his old friends for new ones and they were not human to begin with. If he can throw away friends that easily, then what will he do when he finds Hikari? Replaced her with a talking fish or something? The silver-haired teen's eyes were averted from the ground to look at Hikari, who tilted her head confusedly at his behavior. He lifted his hand up and ruffled her hair. "But don't worry… we'll find them together. I can promise you that." He said.

"Yeah." Hikari laughed, combing her hair with her fingers to fix the damage. Her eyes traveled down to the weapon Riku was holding. "What's that funny looking sword anyway?" she pointed her finger at the blade.

Riku raised his weapon. "This? It's a keyblade."

"A keyblade? A keyblade!" Hikari exclaimed loudly. "I heard all about it from Merlin! He said the one who is wields the key is the chosen one! Are you really the chosen one, Riku?" her eyes seemed to shined with amazement as she stared at the keyblade and then to Riku.

Riku smiled, raising his keyblade up. "I guess so…"

"That's so awesome!" Hikari grinned. "Let's go back to Traverse Town! Merlin told me that he's supposed to teach the Key by request of the King!" she grabbed Riku's hand and took out the Star Shard.

"Hikari." Riku called, stopping the brunette from using the Shard. Said girl turned to look at her friend. "Let's not rush things, okay? I don't need to learn from him…I can already control my powers."

Hikari laughed. "That's the Riku I know… cocky as ever!"

"How did you get here anyway?" Riku asked, shoving Hikari playfully as the two made their way back to Hades' chamber.

"Oh!" Hikari stared the Star Shard in her hand. She showed it to him, a grin on her face. "I used this! It kinda sends me off to random worlds, but I'm glad it sends me to this world." She placed the shard back into her pouch.

The brunette took a few steps ahead of Riku. "I got it from Merlin. He said that it used to belong to a King named Mickey Mouse. Funny surname, huh?" She turned to face him, her hands crossed behind her neck with a grin on her face.

"Yeah, pretty."

Hikari saw Riku nodding his head at her stories. A smile appeared on her lips. She was happy. She was happy that she found Riku, someone she knew in this scary and crazy world. A feeling of hope bloomed inside of her. She almost thought it was impossible to find her family and friends, but then, here she was… walking, talking and laughing with Riku. It was a start. If she could find Riku, then she could find everyone too!

"—and then," The brunette stopped talking when the expression on Riku's face changed yet again. His eyes turned somewhat cold and were narrowed. His lips were set in a thin line. Blue eyes glanced down to look at how he balled up his hands tightly. Something was wrong, Riku never get this scary look before. She turned around to look at what he was seeing. "Who are you?" she asked.

Hades wasn't the one inside the chamber. It was another person—a tall woman to be exact. She had her back turned against the teens, but she didn't turn her attention to them. The scepter she held was long and had a green orb on top. Her robe reached the floor, dragging it behind her. A crow was perched in her shoulder, squawking loudly to alert its master of company. What stood out about this woman wasn't her sense of fashion, but the horns sticking out of her head are what caught the brunette's attention.

"Who are you?" The brunette repeated. The woman finally turned around, showing her face to the girl. It took all her might not to flinch under the woman's stare. She furrowed her eyebrows and reached her hand out. "If you're the one who's making Riku act like this then you got another thing coming!" she summoned her rod into hand.

"Is this the girl you were looking for, child?" The woman asked, turning to face the boy.

Riku placed a hand on Hikari's shoulder. "She's not Kairi, but she's my friend."

"You know this lady, Riku?" Hikari jabbed her thumb at the woman.

The silver-haired teen nodded his head. "She's Maleficent. The woman who will help us find Kairi." He said.

Hikari glanced over to the woman, giving her a look. She summoned her rod away, but didn't lower her guard around the woman. She learned a lot from Phil and he said that shady people need to be watched carefully. A lot of people told her not to judge a book by its cover. Then again, this needs to be reconsidered. The brunette didn't trust the woman, not just because her freaky attire, but because of the chilling vibes she gets from this woman.

"I see you have potential in magic, child." Maleficent said, walking closer to the two teens.

The brunette nodded her head slowly. "Yeah. Merlin and Fairy Godmother taught me."

Maleficent stared at her. "That fool taught you? Such a waste… a talent like yours wasted by a foolish wizard." She stroked the crow's beak on her shoulder, her eyes averting from the crow to the girl.

"Hey! Merlin and Fairy Godmother are the best! They taught me the basic!" Hikari argued. Who was she to judge Merlin's and Fairy Godmother's abilities? For all she knows this woman might be even worse than herself!

"Only the basics? Have those fools not seen the talent you have?"

"I was in a bit of a rush—,"

"Tell me, child. Do you wish to learn more?" Maleficent suddenly asked, cutting Hikari's words.

"Well, yeah, but—,"

"Then join us. I'll teach you every spell that I know and more."

Hikari stopped. "…that's so sudden." She said, her eyes blinking owlishly.

Riku placed a hand on Hikari's shoulder. "C'mon, Hikari. Think about it. If you join me, we'll be unstoppable. We'll be able to find Sora and Kairi together and travel across the worlds. Just the four of us." He said, giving an encouraging squeeze.

Hikari crossed her arms, thinking. "I do want to learn more… alright! I'm in!" she grinned, giving a thumbs up.

"Good choice." Maleficent nodded her head and a black portal appeared behind her. "Let us return back to the castle." She entered the portal, disappearing in the inky darkness.

Riku walked ahead of the brunette.

Hikari stared at the portal, a frown appeared on her lips before she entered. _'Before… he only mentions Kairi… And now Sora and Kairi? Did Riku just forgets about Sora? Just what's going on here?'_

The brunette decided to put those thoughts aside for now. She followed both Riku and Maleficent inside the portal, walking straight to nothing in particular. Despite the dark opening, everything was white and gray inside the portal. It seemed pretty endless. That is until another portal appeared just a few feet away. She was the last to come out of that portal.

"Wow…" Hikari said under her breath. The moment she stepped out of the portal, she was inside a large foyer room. The ceilings were high and a large chandelier hung above her. There were different hallways that were inside the foyer room. Grand staircases were located in front of her. Half way up to the second floor, the staircases were divided to the left and to the right, but all ends at the second floor. The only the foyer lacked was sunlight. Lots and lots of sunlight and light. It was really dark inside! Almost as if no one paid the bills or it was abandoned or something. "It's really dark here…" she said.

"C'mon, Hikari." Riku called out from the stairs, snapping the brunette from her thoughts. His voice echoed in the empty foyer and each steps he took up the stairs could be heard clearly. "You don't want to get left behind, do you?"

"W-Wait for me!" Hikari ran up the stairs to catch up with him. She clearly doesn't want to get left behind in this dark castle. She finally caught up to him and panted when she reached his side. She nudged his arm softly, gaining his attention. "Hey, Riku… do you really trust this lady?" She whispered.

The silver haired teen glanced over to look at Maleficent's back. He shook his head. "I don't know what she's planning… but for the moment, I'll go along with her plans." He said. "You should too. Don't give everyone your trust so easily."

Maleficent suddenly stopped. "Come, child. We shall begin your training." She turned sideways and motioned her hand for Hikari to come closer. She walked inside a room, leaving both Riku and Hikari alone in the halls.

Riku placed a hand on Hikari's shoulder. "If you need anything, my room's just down the hall, on the far end of the right." He said and walked off to the end of the hall.

Hikari nodded, staring at Riku until he disappeared in the darkness of the empty halls. Only his footsteps echoed off the walls. After a few more seconds, the brunette decided to enter the room Maleficent was in. She opened the door and it creaked loudly.

Before her eyes tried to adjust to the low light, something huge knocked her down. She yelped as she landed on the floor with a loud thud, a few feet away from the door. She sat up, rubbing her head to ease the pain. She raised her head up and her eyes widened at the pair of yellow eyes staring back at her. She quickly jumped out of the way when she saw the outline of the Heartless' hands were raised above its head. The Heartless slammed his large hands to the floor, breaking the marble tiles.

"A Heartless?!" Hikari shouted as she summoned her rod into hand. She pointed it as the Heartless and casted a Fire spell. "FIRA!" A burst of fire came out and hit the Heartless.

She felt a presence behind her. She turned around and raised her rod. Her rod clashed with a sword. She grunted when she was overpowered by the monstrous strength even with both her hands holding the rod as she tried to prevent the sword from slashing her. Her arms were giving out. She quickly sidestepped to avoid the sword coming down at her. She swung her foot and kicked the sword out of the Heartless' hands.

"Take this!" She whacked the Heartless on the head. "Freeze!" she casted Blizzara and hit the frozen Heartless. It broke to pieces and disappeared in a blink of an eye.

"What's going on here, Maleficent!" Hikari demanded as she glanced around the room. At that moment, the room suddenly brightens, blinding the brunette for a few seconds. She shut her eyes tightly and covered them with her arm. She slowly opened her eyes as they adjusted to the light. A silhouette of Maleficent appeared a few feet away from her.

"Dear child, this is a part of your training." Maleficent answered.

"A part of my—," The brunette's eyes widened when Heartless began to emerge from the floor. Their heads bobbing and their eyes scanning the area for its prey. She stood in a fighting stance, glaring at the swarm of Heartless separating her from Maleficent. A Heartless lunged at her with its claws. She swung her rod and it hit the Heartless, making it disappear in black smoke. "What kind of magic training is this?!" she shouted as she kept on fighting the Heartless.

The Heartless kept on attacking her. Even if she continued on swinging her rod to hit the Heartless and her magic to kill the Heartless. It wasn't enough to make them all disappear. She was surrounded by the Shadows. "FIRAGA!" She raised her rod above her head and casted the fire spell. A burst of fire eliminated the Heartless around her.

"Fascinating."

Hikari snapped her attention to Maleficent.

"You are far more capable than I thought."

The brunette huffed tiredly. "I don't know if I should feel insulted or relieved."

Maleficent walked closer to Hikari, who pointed her rod at her warily. "You indeed have potential… but you did not use it to the fullest." She said.

"What do you mean?"

"You did not tap the powers that lies within your heart." Maleficent directed her scepter at Hikari's chest where her heart is. Hikari placed a hand over her chest, pondering on what Maleficent was trying to say. It was true that Merlin and Fairy Godmother kept on telling her to continue on believing her dream and never give in to the dark powers. She believed that she is using her ability to the max. She did the best she can. "Release it, child. Release the darkness within your heart if you want to become stronger." She continued.

"Merlin and Fairy Godmother told me to never use it. They say that it's dangerous and I can't control it yet." Hikari said, furrowing her eyebrows.

"Which is why I am teaching you how to use it." Maleficent raised Hikari's chin up to meet her eyes. "You do want to save your friend, now do you?"

Hikari swatted Maleficen't hand away. "I do. I want to find Kairi and Sora and everyone else too."

"Sora? That wretched boy?" The woman's eyes widened slightly before placing a hand on her chin. Hikari looked a little mad when Maleficent called her brother a 'wretched boy'. Before Hikari could even retort, Maleficent spoke first. "Did Riku not tell you?"

"Tell me what?" Hikari asked, her eyes narrowing suspiciously at the woman.

The woman placed a hand on Hikari's shoulder. "I am afraid your brother has abandoned Riku for new friends."

"What?" Hikari was stunned. "That's a lie! Sora would never abandon anyone!" she quickly denied, stepping away from the woman.

"Oh, you poor naïve child… Your brother has abandoned Riku for new comrades and power. The keyblade's power are supposed to be Riku's, but your brother stole it from him." Maleficent said, a sigh escaped her lips.

Hikari's eyes widened. "Sora did that? That doesn't sound like Sora at all…" she mumbled under her breath. She looked down to the floor, thinking. "If Riku's the chosen one and got his keyblade stolen… then what was that I just saw back in the Underworld?" she lifted her gaze up.

"The keyblade you just saw is a gift from me to replace the real one." Maleficent stared at Hikari. The woman moved her scepter closer to the girl and with a wave of her hand, the ball showed a person along with two animals inside. They were walking and talking, but all were mute to Hikari's ears. "I do not tell a lie, for I only speak the truth." She placed a hand on Hikari's shoulder.

Hikari stared at the projection of Sora and the two walking animals. In the image, Sora was holding a giant key, but the design was way different than Riku's. He looked happy with his new friends. "You're wrong… Sora would never do that. Riku must've seen some other Sora or a clone or something. He would never do that to his best friend." she mumbled.

"The poor boy was left alone and I was the one who found him." The woman answered. "Riku lied to you because he doesn't want to hurt your feelings. He didn't want your own brother to hurt you the way he did to him." She said, smirking when she saw the doubt in the girl's eyes.

"But Sora would never abandon me." Hikari said.

"Would he? Even if he is your sibling, would you not think that he too would abandon you for power and new comrades?" Maleficent asked again. She walked away from Hikari and to the door. "We shall continue tomorrow, for I have another business to attend to." She said before she exited the room.

The door closed with a loud creek.

Hikari stared at the door. She shook her head, trying to shake off the negative thinking away. The brunette went out of the room and glanced to her right where Riku's room is located. She walked towards the dark halls, still pondering about what Maleficent said. What that woman said doesn't make sense at all. She lived with Sora for almost her whole life and not once he did abandon anyone. Well, except that time when they were trying to avoid their mother's fury, but nonetheless, he would never abandon anyone in need.

The brunette finally reached the door in the end of the hall. She brought her knuckles up and knocked the door twice. The door opened and a silver-haired boy was seen opening the door.

"Finished with your training already?" Riku stepped away from the door to let Hikari in his room.

"Yeah for today." Hikari sighed heavily. She dragged her feet inside the room and threw herself on the comfy bed. "She really pushed my buttons!" she cried out childishly, trying to make it seem like nothing happened.

Riku closed the door and sat on the bed. "I can tell. I heard all that ruckus from here." He said. He felt the bed shift and Hikari sat beside him, holding a pillow to her chest. "What really happened in there? I can tell something's in your mind." He asked.

Hikari turned to face Riku, "…is it true, Riku? Did Sora really abandon you?"

Riku stared at Hikari for a moment. He looked away as a sigh escaped his lips. "He did." He answered, no hesitation in his tone.

"Oh…" The brunette frowned and buried her face in the pillow, gripping it tightly.

Riku placed a hand on Hikari's head, ruffling her hair. "Don't worry, you still have me. We'll find Kairi together and we don't need Sora's help."

Hikari laughed. "Yeah." She grinned at him.

' _I know all of this is a lie. Sora would never do that. I have to find the truth, but for now… I'll stay and keep Riku safe…'_


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: A new chapter! I hope you guys enjoy this one too ^_^

I'm also going to remind you guys to read the manga that I mad because it will link up with the story sometime in the future.

Anyway, special thanks to LostSerapth23 for adding this story to their favs!  
And special thanks to Urshura Maria for adding this story to their alerts!

AllSpark Princess: Yeah siblings bonds are really unbreakable :D

Gry20: Well, it did take Mickey everyone, so the Star Shard might act up on its own when things get a little out of hand.

Guest: Awwww thank you so much! And yes, I do believe a lot of poking, pinching and kicking is involved when they see each other xD and awwww thank you very much! I really appreciate it 3

Lulu9814: You got that right haha

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

Hikari © me

* * *

Chapter 7: Guide

"Wow… cool gates." Sora glanced up to look at the two statues.

After his encounter with Riku, he seemed more determined to find his friends. It was a start for him. He thought that it will take longer to find anyone, especially Hikari, but now that he found Riku and know that he's alright, he will stop at nothing to find his sister and his friend. He couldn't wait to reunite with everyone and have adventures together.

"What's this world anyway? Some kind of Greek?" Sora asked out loud.

Jiminy sat on his shoulder, pulling out a cricket sized book. "This here is Olympus Coliseum! It's a world where all kinds of heroes gather and fight in a martial art based tournament." He explained.

"Martial arts?! I'm good at that!" Sora's ears perked up at the mention of it. He was decent with martial arts, due to the fact that he and Riku always face each other off back when they were in the islands. He quickly marched towards the gates as the cricket hopped back into his hood. He offered Jiminy a seat on his shoulder, but Jiminy refused, saying that it's much more steady and calm in the hood. "C'mon guys! Let's check it out!" he grinned, walking up the stairs.

"Sora! We don't have time to play tournaments!" Donald quacked as he ran after the boy.

"A-hyuck! C'mon Donlad! It could be fun!" Goofy followed the boy, walking behind him.

Donald slumped his shoulders before following the other two to the entrance of the coliseum.

Sora pushed the door open. His blue eyes glanced around. The lobby was smaller than he thought. He spotted a tiny man standing on a pedestal, writing something on a black board. The tiny man's attention was still on the board even when Sora entered the lobby.

"Good timin'! Push that pedestal over here will 'ya?" the tiny half man half goat said, pointing the pedestal across the room with his chalk.

Sora glanced over to the pointed pedestal. He walked over to the pedestal and took a deep breath. He placed his hands on the side of the pedestal and pushed it with all his might. He slipped when he tried too hard to push it. The pedestal didn't even move an inch from the spot. Donald and Goofy even tried pushing the pedestal together, but it was still at the same place as before.

"Argggh! This is so impossible!" Sora yelled out in frustration.

"Impossible?! Since when did you became a quitter—," The tiny man glanced back angrily. He blinked when the person he expected wasn't Hercules, but a skinny teenage boy. He turned his back again and continued writing. "Wrong person. Sorry, kid. Thought you were someone else." He simply waved him off with his hand.

Sora approached the tiny man. "Are you the guy who runs this place?" he asked.

"What's it to 'ya?" The man asked, still not paying attention.

The brunet grinned, puffing his chest out smugly. "Well, I wanna join in the tournament! Where can I sign up?" he asked.

The tiny many stopped writing. "Hah! You want to sign up the last minute for the tournament? Don't you be kidding me, kid. This here is a tournament for heroes and I got two words for 'ya… You ain't heroes!" the man shouted, turning his head around to point fingers at the three.

"Wak! What kind of reason is that?" Donald argued.

"Simple, ducky! Everyone thinks they have what it takes to be a hero, but it's more than just muscles and brains." The man said, crossing his arms. He jumped off the pedestal and guided the three out of the lobby. "And besides, you need a ticket to enter the tournament and it's sold out! Now scram! Shoo! Shoo!" he motioned his hand for the three to go away.

"Hey wait—!"

The door was slammed shut in their face.

Donald yelled out in frustration, jumping up and down. He calmed down a few seconds later and crossed his arms angrily. "Let's just forget about it, Sora." He huffed, walking away from the coliseum.

Sora sighed. He was looking forward to try out his new skills out in the tournament.

"Why the long faces?" a voice startled him. He turned his head and a blue-skinned man stood right beside him. He jumped in surprise at the sudden appearance. "Aw c'mon, you can tell me. I don't bite… but I do burn a little." the man laughed.

"Umm… who are you?" Sora asked, staring at the man skeptically.

"The name's Hades, kid. God of the Underworld. Nice to meet 'cha." Hades said casually. He placed his hand on Sora's shoulder and leaned down to match Sora's height. "Now I can't help but hear that you three wanted to enter the tournament, but that small goat fry didn't let you in." he smirked.

Sora pushed Hades away and nodded. "Yeah, that's about right."

Hades smiled. "Well you're in luck! I have three tickets right here in my hand." He showed them his empty hand. Blue flames appeared to be burning the golden tickets to existence. He waved the tickets in his hands right in front of their face and gave them to Sora. "Think of it as an apology present from me." He said.

"An apology?" Sora echoed, staring at the golden tickets. He tilted his head at Hades' confusing words. As far as he remembers, he didn't meet anyone like him from the previous worlds. "But we just met today." He said.

"I know, I know. She helped me a lot and I just feel really bad…she tried so hard to win the West Bracket's tournament, but she didn't because of that spiky-haired ingrate!" Hades frowned, his whole body flaming up to a red color. He took a deep breath and exhaled from his mouth. He turned his back on Sora, sighing heavily. "So I thought… What better way to make her happy, then to give her brother tickets to enter the tournament and fight the one who broke her hopes and dreams."

"What?! Hikari was here and I missed her again?! Oh come on!" Sora shouted to the sky, taking a fistful of his hair. He missed her in Traverse Town, fool him once. He missed her in Wonderland, okay, fool him twice. But missed her again in Olympus Coliseum? Luck was not on his side. "And she entered the tournament alone?!" he groaned, fearing that Hikari might be seriously hurt by this 'spiky-haired ingrate' Hades was talking about.

"You're going to enter yourself too, Sora." Goofy said, laughing a little.

"Well, yeah, but with you guys too." Sora remarked, correcting him.

Donald walked towards Sora's side. "Are you sure we can trust him?" he whispered.

"Well, he did gave us tickets that looks like the real deal." Sora whispered back. He turned his attention back to Hades, who was waiting for his respond. "Thanks, we'll sure enter the tournament now." He smiled in thanks.

Hades waved his hand. "Just hope you put up a good show, kid."

The three went back inside the coliseum, leaving the God of the Underworld behind.

They were completely oblivious to the evil smirk he was giving. He tricked the trio to enter the tournament and fight Cloud. He was glad that they were really easy to trick when he brought up Hikari. Although, he was aiming from the start that Cloud will eliminate Hercules and Sora for him or at least make them tired so he can kill them himself… but he could go for the keybearer and the spiky-haired ingrate have a death match and try to kill each other. He did light up the fuse in each opponent. A promise to find the person Cloud wanted and a reason for Sora to fight that blond.

Hades went back to the Underworld through a dark portal, leaving the courtyard empty.

The satyr was found writing on the board again when Sora entered the lobby. "Oh not you again!" he groaned.

"We have tickets this time!" Sora shoved the golden tickets right in front of the satyr's face. The satyr took the tickets from Sora's hand, his eye wide and confusion was written across his facial features. "Now you have to let us in." he grinned.

The satyr squinted his eyes as he inspected the tickets to the very edge. "Looks legit… alright, kid. You're in." he said, placing his hands on his hips. "The name's Phil." He introduced.

"I'm Sora, and this is Donald and Goofy." The brunet introduced himself and pointed his finger to Donald and Goofy who stood beside him.

Phil blinked. "Sora? Sora… Sora… Sora… where have I heard that before?" he tapped his temple a few times as he tries hard to remember the name. He snapped his fingers and a bright look replaced his previous grumpy one. "Oh! I remember now! You're Hikari's brother now aren't 'cha?" he wiggled his fingers, finally remembering.

"Why didn't you recognize him at the first place?! They both are most likely to look similar!" Donald quacked loudly at the satyr.

Phil placed his hands on his hips, glaring at the duck. "Well sorry for not realizing sooner!" he yelled back.

Sora frowned a little. "So it's true that she was here…"

"Gawrsh… Do you, uh, know where she is now?" Goofy asked.

Phil shrugged. "Don't actually know… she left after she lost in the final rounds in the West Bracket." He turned around and pointed the board that has Hikari's name on it. It was true that her name was written on the West Bracket's side. She was placed on the second row and the first one was Cloud. "But I don't blame her at all, she went up against Cloud, one of the best fighters I've ever seen in a decade." He admitted, his arms crossed.

"Is there a chance that we might fight Cloud in our tournament?" Sora asked, his eyebrows furrowed down in determination.

"I like that determined look in your eyes, kid!" Phil pointed out. "You'll face him if you want to get to the final round and fight Hercules." He said.

"But before you even enter the tournament, I need to test out your skills first."

Sora glanced over to Donald and Goofy who nodded.

"Bring it on!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Focus, child."

The castle located in Hollow Bastion was once a dark and quiet place, but ever since a certain brunette began training under the Mistress of Evil, things haven't been as quiet as they used too. For the past days, the brunette's screams of complaint and exclamation in pain have been heard throughout the castle. And now, just like the previous times, Maleficent was training Hikari again.

Hikari dodge rolled away when a sword came down to cut her in half. The Heartless flapped its wings and rushed towards the girl without a second wasted. She raised her hand and a barrier, one of the spells Maleficent taught her, appeared surrounding her whole body. The Heartless rammed into her, sending the ball-like barrier to the other side of the room. As soon as the barrier hits the ground, the brunette was sent halfway across the room.

"Ouch! That freakin' hurt!" Hikari shouted angrily as she sat up to glare at the Heartless. "Take this! Blizzaga!" she pointed her rod at the Heartless and dashed forward. The spell hit the Heartless directly and she kept on hitting the Heartless with the rod, using it as a sword instead of a magic wand.

The Heartless finally disappeared and her pants were the only thing heard inside the room.

"Well done." Maleficent praised as she walked closer.

Hikari dropped down to the floor, "Can we take a break? I'm so tired!" she whined.

Maleficent eyed the girl before walking away towards the door. "Very well. I shall give you some time to rest." She said and closed the door to the room, going to who knows where again.

Hikari groaned and laid down on the floor with her arms sprawled out. It was always like this. After she finished training or said that she wanted a break, Maleficent would either tell her to continue or give her a break and left with no reason at all. She didn't mind at all, but sometimes she wondered if Maleficent really does want to teach her magic or not.

"Nice work, Hikari." Riku clapped his hands. He was inside the room where Hikari was training. He was always inside the room whenever Maleficent called Hikari to train, watching and coming to her rescue when things go too far.

Hikari grinned. "Hah! That Heartless had it coming." She gave a thumbs up to her friend, the grin still plastered on her lips. She sat on the floor as Riku approached her. She laid down on the floor and stared up at the ceiling, wiping the sweat off her forehead with her forearm. She released her hold of the rod, placing it beside her and spread her arms out tiredly. "But for now… I think I rather have an hour or a day break." She said tiredly.

Riku shook his head at his lazy friend. "A day is too long… besides, you only learned about two out of ten spells Maleficent taught you." He smirked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Correction, I learned three out of ten. So bwee!" Hikari corrected, sticking her tongue out childishly at Riku. She was satisfied for learning three spells for the past days. The spells were a bit too advanced. Starting from the final stage of Fire to Aero, turns out there were something more powerful than ending the spell with a 'ga', to a little bit simpler spells like Barrier and Esuna. There were also some dark spells Maleficent tried to teach her, but she 'tried' her best to cast it and failed. "Don't you have anything better to do other than nag me to train again?" she asked, looking up at Riku's eyes.

Riku thought for a moment. "Nope, not exactly. I have some time to spare before I leave for Agrabah." He answered.

"Can I come?!" Hikari sat up, her eyes sparkling.

"I don't know. You still haven't learned the ten spells and you're not yet capable of handling the darkness…" Riku trailed off.

"Nag, nag, nag! I so can!" Hikari mimicking Riku's expression before puffing out her cheeks, glaring at Riku. "I came here using one of your portal thingy and look at me! I'm fine! And, and I have this rod with me too!" she gestured to her body and kicked her rod to her hand, as if it was a ball.

Riku ruffled Hikari's hair, chuckling. "I was joking. Of course you can come. I did promise that we will look for Kairi together." he said.

"Not funny…" The brunette pouted. "When are we gonna leave?"

"Now. Are you sure you want to come? I thought you were really tired." Riku asked as the two teen walked out of the room together.

"I'm never too tired to look for Kairi! Just wait here for a minute." Hikari said and dashed to the end of the hall, right where her room was located. Her room was beside Riku's since he requested for it. Her room was far more bright than Riku's who preferred his room dark. The only part of the castle she liked was her room. Bright, big and right next to Riku's. But she spends her time in Riku's room until it was bedtime. She didn't want to spend her time alone, doing nothing in her room. At least with Riku, she can talk.

' _Now where did I put that belt…'_ Hikari took her belt that has the three pouches Fairy Godmother gave her from the table. It was about time Riku asked her to come along. She wanted to go outside the castle since day one. She always like the outdoor better than training twenty-four seven inside a dark and spooky castle. She ran back to Riku as she puts the belt around her waist. "I'm back! I just need to strap on my utility belt and we're good to go!" she grinned.

Riku raised an eyebrow. "You mean your belt?"

"My _utility_ belt. It has everything! And it's bigger than you think." Hikari corrected. The belt with the three pouches has everything, starting from Ethers and Potions to her source of travel, the Star Shard.

The silver-haired boy shook his head. "Whatever, let's go." He reached his hand out and the dark portal appeared.

Before Riku could even set his foot inside the portal, Hikari grabbed his wrist. "Actually… I was hoping we could go with my way." She grinned, taking out her Star Shard and waved it a little.

"Your way?" Riku asked, his eyes moving to look at the Star Shard.

"Pleeeeease?" Hikari pleaded, giving him her best sad puppy look.

Riku rolled his eyes. "You know that doesn't work on me, but alright." He said and the portal disappeared.

Hikari cheered, pumping her fists up in the air. "Yes! Let's go!" She shouted happily. She grabbed Riku's hand and dragged him away. "We need to go outside! Or else we'll hit the ceiling!" she said.

"Hit the ceiling?" Riku echoed, letting Hikari drag him.

As soon as they stepped out of the castle, Hikari raised the Star Shard above her head, pointing it up to the sky. She held Riku's hand as they both gazed up to the sky. "Alright, Star Shard! Take us to where Kairi is!" she said, focusing her mind on Kairi only.

"Hikari, I don't think it works that way—!" Riku stopped when they started to glow.

The Star Shard took off into the sky, bringing the two who were in contact with it.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Sora huffed tiredly when he defeated the giant three-headed dog. He sat on the ground, trying to even his breathing. Donald and Goofy sat beside him, tired out from the fight as well. The brunet glanced to his right and left, making sure that no one was hurt. He pulled himself together and stood up, summoning the keyblade away.

"You guys okay?" He asked as both Donald and Goofy followed him.

"A-Okay!" Goofy laughed.

"Fine here." Donald replied.

Sora nodded, "Let's get back to Phil and check if Cloud is alright too." He said, running towards the lobby where Phil, Hercules and Cloud were waiting. "Guys! We did it! We beat the giant dog! We're heroes now!" he exclaimed, excitement laced in his face and tone.

"Huh, really?" Phil asked sarcastically. "Let's not get big in the head now, kid. How's about you try moving that old pedestal?" he jabbed his thumb at the pedestal near the board.

"Of course! I think I can move that pedestal now!" Sora rolled his sleeves up as he approached the pedestal. He placed his hands on the sides and took a deep breath. He pushed the pedestal with all of his might and to his surprise, it moved. "It moved! It moved! Did you guys see that?" he glanced around, only to find that Goofy's and Donald's hands were right beside his.

Goofy laughed. "A-hyuck! The rules didn't say anythi' about helping is not allowed."

"Aw c'mon guys…" Sora laughed a little. He blinked his eyes when something bright seemed to come from the floor beneath the pedestal he just pushed. His eyes widened when a keyhole was seen when the light dies out. He summoned his keyblade into hand and pointed it at the keyhole. A ray of light shot out from the tip of his keyblade and locked the keyhole. The brunet smiled to himself and summoned his keyblade away. "Another world saved. Couldn't have done it without you guys." He whispered to both Donald and Goofy.

"What would you do without us, Sora." Donald joked, laughing behind his hand.

"Hey!" Sora placed his hands on his hips.

"What just happened?" Phil rubbed his eyes, trying to see if he was seeing an illusion.

Hercules shrugged. "Must be their magic." He answered. He nudged Phil's arm and motioned his head to Sora, Donald and Goofy. "Phil… I think it's time for a little announcement." He smiled.

Phil sighed and nodded his head in agreement. "Alright kiddies, come forward!" he motioned his hands for the trio to come closer to him. "I've seen you guys fight. Stronger than anyone, kinder than anyone, always there for you and handsome to boot. I here now dub thee Junior Heroes!" he exclaimed.

"Junior Heroes? What does that supposed to mean?" Donald asked, crossing his arms.

"It means what it means. You guys ain't ready to be real heroes just yet." Phil said.

Sora laughed. "Next time, when we play the games again, we'll prove to you that we are heroes!"

"Sure, next time then."

Sora, Donald and Goofy exited the coliseum. The brunet stretched his arms out as he took a deep breath of the clean air. He glanced around the empty courtyard. His blue eyes caught a glimpse of red. It was a red colored cape from the blond he fought in the tournament. The blond sat alone in the shadows, pondering on something.

"Hey… you okay?" Sora asked, despite the fact that he was ready to beat him to the ground fifteen minutes ago. He saw the man nodded his head. "So why did you go with a shady guy like Hades?" he asked.

Cloud glanced up to look at Sora's eyes. "I'm looking for someone. Hades promised to help. I tried to exploit the power of darkness, but it backfired. I fell into darkness, and couldn't find the light." He said, standing up.

Sora frowned a little. "Well… I'm looking for my light too." He said, smiling. He placed his hand on his chest, staring down. "From the story Phil told me, I think I know why Hikari didn't seem to be mad when she lost the tournament. Maybe… you talked to her before and she realized that your dream is much more important than hers." he said, looking up to face Cloud's back.

Cloud turned around to face the boy. "I figured…" he mumbled. He gave something to Sora, placing the small object on his hand. "Don't lose sight of the light." He lastly said before turning around to leave.

Sora glanced down to look at the object Cloud gave. "Hey! How about a rematch? No darkness, just a fair one on one." He shouted.

"I think I'll pass."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Whoa!"

Both Riku and Hikari exclaimed in surprise when they dived into the cold ocean. The two quickly swam up to the surface, taking the air their lungs needed. Hikari shook the water out of her hair, glancing around the ocean for her silver-haired friend. As soon as she thought about him, he popped his head out of the water, shaking the excess water from his hair.

"What was that about?!" Riku asked as he swam closer to the brunette. "I thought I told you Agrabah, not in the middle of the ocean."

Hikari slicked back her bangs. "I just thought of Kairi! And you didn't exactly say Agrabah either." She said as she swam closer to Riku, meeting him in the middle.

"Then why didn't your Star Shard lead us to Kairi?" Riku gave her a slight glare.

"The Star Shard kind of has a mind of its own?" The brunette answered unsurely, a sheepish look across her face.

"Next time, we're going to use my _portal_." Riku said, stressing the word out to make his point.

"Sorry…" Hikari apologized sincerely. "You know… it's kinda ironic that Kairi's name also means 'sea'." She gave an awkward laugh.

"Maybe you thought about a wrong 'kairi'." Riku mumbled, his eyes glanced around to find land. "We need to find land." He said.

Hikari grabbed Riku's hand from underneath the water. "We could go for another shot." She said and Riku gave her a look. "C'mon… at least it might be Agrabah or somewhere better than the ocean." She reasoned.

Riku sighed, finally giving in. "Alright…But if we end up in one more place that involves water… we're taking the portal. End of discussion." He pointed his finger at Hikari.

"Fine…"


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: I think I'm going to keep reminding you guys to read the manga (Little Adventures) at my DA account. The manga will eventually become a big part of this series. So yeah haha

I have so many people to thank for supporting me and giving me great advices! Thanks guys!

Special thanks to doctor3378 for adding this story to their favs!

Guest: Awww thank you! I was actually thinking of Atlantica when I wrote that haha. He's my fav villain too! He was so funny among the Disney villains. And thank you so much for reading the manga! I really appreciate it :D but I made a new version, the version you're reading seemed to be First Meeting, right? The new version is Little Adventures. Up to the alien/guy/sailor moon/sleeping beauty is still the same, but with new scenes ^_^ thank you so much!

BlueXRedKnight: Yeah! He is!

Guest: I'm glad you like the relationship between them ^^

Lulu9814: We'll find out about Agrabah in this chap ^^

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

Hikari © me

* * *

Chapter 8: Agrabah

"This is so hot…" Hikari mumbled.

After using the Star Shard again, they did actually get somewhere dry. A very, very dry place to be exact. It's not the beach, not the badlands, but the desert. The freaking desert with no signs of life at all except for the two teens who were walking across the mountains of sand. The scorching sun was making their skin burn and their tongue dry.

"We have to deal with it…" Riku said, his eyes glancing around the desert. The scorching sun doesn't seem to bother him, though the sweat coming down from his forehead says otherwise, but he didn't complain. He kept on walking, one foot after another. "Maleficent told us to go to Agrabah." he continued, walking ahead of the girl.

Hikari groaned, wiping the sweat from her forehead. "I rather be stranded in the ocean than in the desert… at least I can keep cool in the water." Even with her hood pulled up, her head still felt the stinging sunlight. She really doesn't like the desert that much. The sand's too hot and there's no shade anywhere. Her eyes glanced over to Riku's back. "Can we use your portal thingy to at least walk in there and keep cool?" she whined.

"It's only a little heat…" Riku sighed.

"A little? I'm melting here!" Hikari shouted, placing her hands on her hips.

Riku glanced over to her. "That's because you're standing on quick sand." He pointed out calmly, pointing his finger at the sand below her.

"Quick sand? Yikes!" Hikari exclaimed in surprise, finally realizing that she was sinking deeper and deeper into the sand. She tried to move her legs, but found them completely stuck inside the sand. Riku reached his hand out and she took them. The silver-haired teen pulled the brunette out of the quick sand and let he sit down beside him as he stood beside her. "Argh! I hate the desert! Can we go back now?" she huffed, shouting to the sky.

"There's no turning back now…" Riku said and Hikari let out a groan. "Besides, we seemed to reach a city." He added, pointing his finger.

"A city? In the middle of the desert?" Hikari followed his finger and her eyes widened at the sight of a fairly large city with walls surrounding it. She quickly slide down the sand hill and looked back to face Riku, placing her hands above her eyes to block the sunlight. "C'mon Riku! Let's check it out!" she shouted and continued to ran to the city.

Riku shook his head, but a small smile was on his lips. He followed Hikari's steps, sliding down the sand hill. He easily caught up with her. The two continued on running till their reach the city outskirt's. They glanced at each other before entering the city.

"Wow… this place is so crowded!" Hikari said, glancing left and right. Everywhere she looks, vendors were shouting out the items they're selling and children were laughing and running around playing with each other. She could even see a few groups of women weaving colorful fabrics from a shop. Her blue eyes glanced around the market with excitement. This was actually the first lively city she visited since she left Destiny Islands. Wonderland was crazy and Olympus Coliseum was all training.

Riku nodded his head in agreement. "Yeah, try not to stay too far." He ignored the vendors' shout of offering their products, though the one behind him seem to fell for the discount trick. As he turned around, only to find his friend was missing. "Hikari! Where are you?" he shouted in the bust market, his eyes glancing around.

"Here I am!"

Riku turned around and caught something in a swift motion. "An apple?" He glanced at fruit he caught. He looked up to find Hikari holding an apple along with a red sash tied around her waist. A bright look was seen across her face. A smile wider than a child in a candy store. "And a sash? Really? It clashes with the utility belt you're wearing." He crossed his arms, giving her a look.

"So what? It's two for one. I can't resist the good offer. And that lady gave me a five percent discount!" Hikari grinned happily.

Riku face-palmed. "Hikari… we're not here to go shopping." He sighed, shaking his head.

"Don't worry, Riku. I bought one for you too!" Hikari took out a white sash with gold patterns from her pouch. She shoved the apple to Riku's hand as she tied the sash around his waist. She took the apple from him and took a few steps back, staring at Riku up and down. She gave Riku a thumbs up. "That lady was right. It does go with your bright fashion." She laughed.

Riku rolled his eyes. "I don't know if I should feel grateful or insulted." He said, but he didn't take the sash off. He placed his hand on Hikari's back and tossed the apple back to her, pushing her to walk forward. "Alright, alright… let's get going now."

"Awww… can I just stay a little longer? I want to explore more." Hikari whined, trying to convince Riku to let her stay.

"Seriously? You want to shop a little more at a time like this?" Riku raised an eyebrow.

Hikari gave a half-half sign. "I can also ask everyone about Kairi." She smiled.

The silver-haired boy sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Alright… but meet me back here in an hour." He said, walking away.

"Okay!" Hikari cheered. She kept her gaze on Riku's back as he went further into the crowd, disappearing from her line of sight. The brunette tossed one of the apples up and down. She tossed the apple to a child who kept on looking at her since the beginning. The child caught the apple and stared at Hikari with hopeful looks. The little boy caught Hikari's smile and nod. He took off to the alley, a smile on his face. _'Now to find some clues.'_ She brought the other apple to her lips.

She stopped when she felt a tug on her sash. She glanced down and spotted a monkey with the saddest kicked puppy look she has ever seen. "A monkey who can do a puppy look… I'm impressed, little guy." The brunette grinned and gave the monkey her apple.

The monkey took the apple and chatter happily.

"So… where's your owner?" Hikari asked.

"There he is! Catch him!" A very angry man shouted, pointing his sword at them from between the people walking in the market. A few people were behind him, looking very furious as well. They pushed their way through the people, shoving them left and right.

"What? He thinks I'm a dude?! Uncool!" Hikari shouted. The monkey jumped on her shoulder and went inside her jacket. He went to perch himself around her neck, popping his head out from the hood, cowering in fear as he held onto the apple.

The brunette bolted to the alley. She kept on running even when they yelled for her to stop. She yelped when two persons were carrying a large piece of table a little bit ahead of her. She went down and skid her way from the gap between the ground and the table. She quickly got up to her feet and glanced over her shoulder. A few men stopped for a moment to get through, but the more buff ones jumped over the table and resumed the chase.

The brunette went took a sharp turn around the corner, sidestepping to avoid bumping to an old woman. She passed on a quick apology before rushing of to lose the men chasing her. She didn't even know why they were chasing her in the first place! She looked down to the monkey that was chattering. He kept on whining, pointing at something. Her blue eyes followed his finger and her eyes widened when one of the men appeared before her eyes.

"Got you now, street rat!" The man lifted his sword up and swung it sideways to her head.

Hikari avoided the sword, doing a backhand spring as she kicked the sword out from his hand. The sword spun in the air and landed on the ground a few feet away, the blade digging into the soil. "Who are you calling a street rat, you big poop head!" she stepped on his toe and kicked his back, sending him to his knees.

The monkey yelped, pointing his finger to the other alley.

Hikari huffed and left the man, sticking her tongue out at him. She followed the monkey and her eyes widened when she spotted a dead end at the end of the alley.

"He went there!"

Hikari panted heavily from the chase. Her line of vision was blurred when a rope appeared in front of her. her eyes crossed at the sight of the rope, following the rope up to the roof. She didn't think twice and quickly climbed the rope. On the other end, someone seemed to help her by pulling. She took the helping hand and went to lay on the roof, the sun back to glare at her whole body. The one who helped her also lay on his back, avoiding to be seen by the angry men bellow. The two crawled to the edge and took a peek.

"Where is he?! That street rat was here a second ago!" The man shouted. "Search this whole alley and city if you have to! I want him found and alive!" he ordered and everyone scattered.

The two retreated back and sighed in relieved. "What was that about?" Hikari sighed out as she sat up.

The man sat up too. "Those were the Palace's Guards… They've been pretty active for the past week." He sighed, ruffling up his hair in frustration. The monkey jumped out from Hikari's hood into the man's arms. "Abu! You're safe! Leave it to you to eat at a time like this." The man noticed the apple and he shook his head.

"Abu?" Hikari echoed.

"Yeah, he's Abu. I'm sorry that he caused you so much trouble… because of him, they thought that you're me." The man apologized, scratching the back of his neck. Abu gave him a look as he kept on eating the apple.

"I find it impossible to mistake a girl for a guy." Hikari snorted. She reached her hand out, offering it to the man. "I'm Hikari and thanks for the rescue back there." She grinned.

The man blinked and shook her hand in greeting. "Aladdin and sorry again for troubling you." He introduced and apologized in the same sentence.

"It's cool. So why were the guards chasing you anyway?" Hikari asked. "But before you answer that… can we get out of the sun?" she fanned herself with her hand.

Aladdin motioned his hand for Hikari to follow. She followed him from behind. He jumped from roof to roof and finally landed on a rundown building with a hole on the roof. He jumped inside the hole and Hikari did the same. Her blue eyes scanned the room and her eyes caught the large hole on the wall. It wasn't because the hole was big, but it was because of the view of a grand palace that surprised her.

Aladdin sat down on a wooden box as Abu perched on his shoulder. "I don't actually know myself… all I did was talk to Princess Jasmine." He sighed out, his shoulders slumped and his gaze stuck on his foot.

"What?" Hikari exclaimed. "Why would they want to capture you if all you did was talk to a princess? That's really rude." She crossed her arms, a frown on her lips.

Aladdin shrugged. "I don't know…" he lifted his gaze up and turned his head to look at the palace. He leaned his elbows against the broken concrete and propped his head up. His kept on staring at the palace with a dreamy look. Abu jumped off from his shoulder after he finished the apple and the monkey climbed up to Hikari's head, mimicking Aladdin's dreamy look. "But even if that's the reason… then it was worth it." he sighed, a smile on his face.

Hikari placed a hand to cover her mouth as her cheeks were tinged with red. "Ooooo! Someone's in love~!" she nudged Aladdin's shoulder, grinning widely. Her grin almost beat the Cheshire Cat! Well, almost…

The black-haired man almost slipped. "N-No way! There's no way a princess like her would fall for a street rat like me." He groaned, a dejected look on his face.

"You're such a pessimist! I think you have a chance with her." Hikari encouraged the young man and Abu nodded his head in agreement.

Aladdin laughed. "I think I'll have a bigger chance if I was a handsome prince."

"Dude, you don't need to change your looks or status." Hikari began. She wasn't really the expert in these kind of things, but she spends her time with Selphie and her romantic side kind of rubbed off on her. She learned a thing or two from Selphie's fantasies. "If she's really the one, then it doesn't matter if you're a prince or not, she'll like you for who you are." She advised, a proud feeling whelming up inside her.

Aladdin blushed. "Thank you, really… but the problem is the rule that states a princess must marry a prince." He sighed heavily.

Hikari blinked. "Bummer…"

All of a sudden a scream broke out. The two glanced out of the hole in the wall and their eyes widened. People were running and screaming around, knocking stalls and shoving each other to get away from something. Hikari glanced over to the opposite direction where the people was running from and she frowned. It was the Heartless' doing alright. She summoned her rod and turned back to the pole.

Aladdin grabbed her shoulder, stopping her. "Where are you going?! We don't know what's out there for sure!" he warned.

"Don't worry! I know what I'm doing." Hikari said, giving a reassuring grin.

"Then we're coming with you. Abu, let's go!" Aladdin said and the monkey sighed before coming along.

They waited until it was safe to come out and avoided a stampede of a mob of people. Aladdin pressed his back to the wall and cautiously glanced around. He arrived at the corner and peeked his head out. He frowned when there was nothing in the town square. He straightened his posture, now not so cautious about the situation. He motioned his hand for Hikari to follow his to the town square.

"This doesn't make sense… why were all those people running?" Aladdin placed a hand on his chin, thinking.

Hikari hummed. "How about we split up? I'll go this way and you'll go that way?" she suggested, pointing her finger at the other direction.

Aladdin nodded. "Good idea, but be careful."

As soon as Hikari was out of sight, Aladdin turned around to do his own search.

"If it isn't the little street rat." The young man spun around and his eyes narrowed. He stood in a fighting stance when the Royal Vizier of Agrabah stood before him. "Going somewhere?" he waved his staff and a group of Heartless surrounded him.

Aladdin glared as Abu began shaking in fear. "What do you want?"

Jafar smirked. "I have a proposition for you."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari glanced around the empty streets. The place was completely deserted! It was so lively moment ago, but now it was like a ghost town. The wind blew, blowing the dirt on the ground and made a dust cloud. She tugged on her hood to cover her eyes when a cloud of dirt was blown her way. She coughed and rubbed her eyes. From the corner of her eyes she saw a woman dressed in a dirty robe running pass her and hid herself in a pile of rolled up carpets.

"Huh?" Hikari blinked. She decided to approach the woman.

"You there. Stop." A voice stopped her. She turned around and found a man dressed in a black robe and a black turban. The brunette stared at the man for a moment, scrutinizing him. The man held his gold staff as a colorful parrot perched himself on the man's shoulder. As the man approaches, the bird flew from his shoulder and landed on top of Hikari's head. "You're one of Maleficent's pets, correct?" he asked.

Hikari placed a hand on her chest. "I took offense to that. I'm not a dog. I'm a human being." She gave him the most disgusted and offended look she could muster. She pointed her rod to the bird perching on her head. "And this pet of yours better not poop on my hood." She warned, the tip of her rod glowing blue.

"Easy with the magic there, toots!" the bird raised his wings in defeat.

Hikari glared at the bird on her head before turning her attention back to the man. She remembered this man. He was one of the people she met in Maleficent's little gathering. There were four more, not including this man and Maleficent. But one thing's for sure, she only met the once and she hates all of them. They kept on calling her 'pet' and other words that were an insult to her. She held it all in because Riku held her back and covered her mouth from shouting comebacks.

"You're one of Maleficent's friends, right? Blafart?" Hikari purposefully got his name wrong, hiding the smile with her hand.

"It's _Sultan Jafar_ to you, insolent girl." Jafar hissed, glaring at the girl. "The word acquaintances fits much better for the term." He corrected, a smirk on his face.

Hikari blew a raspberry at him, rolling her eyes. "Psssh, whatever… old man."

Jafar scoffed at Hikari's behavior, his head held high as he looked down at the brunette with equal disgust and distrust. "Have you seen the princess go by here?" he asked.

"Nope! Didn't see anyone." Hikari answered casually, shaking her head, making the bird flew back to Jafar.

The man frowned. "Keep on searching then. Don't waste our time." he lastly said, turning around and with the sudden turn, his cape flapped behind him.

It took all of Hikari's might to stop herself from stepping on Jafar's _tempting_ long cape. She made a face behind his back and huffed angrily. As soon as Jafar was out of sight, she kept on mimicking his voice in a mocking way.

" _It's Sultan Jafar. Get back to work. Don't waste our time, you insolent brat_ —Whoa!" Hikari stopped when she came face to face with someone. She lost her balance and fell to the ground, landing bottom first. "Oh man…" she groaned.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you…" the woman apologized, helping the girl up to her feet. She watched as Hikari dusted off the dirt from her clothes, a small smile appearing on her lips. She placed a hand on her chest and bowed her head a little. "I would like to thank you for not telling me on Jafar." She said.

"No problem—wait… so does that mean you're the…"

"Princess. Yes, that's right." The princess said, reviling her face a little more from under her hood. She let out a giggle when she saw the expression on Hikari's face. It was a mixture or surprise and disbelief. "I'm Jasmine. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Hikari shook her head, shaking the thoughts away. "I'm Hikari. It's nice to meet you, Princess!" She quickly bowed.

"There's no need for formalities… I'm no longer the Princess of Agrabah." Jasmine said, glancing to the direction of the palace. Hikari tilted her head in confusion. She's the princess of Agrabah, so why was she saying that she's no longer the princess of this world? "My father has been overthrown by Jafar. That sneaky man has taken over Agrabah in over a few hours because of those creatures. I escaped the very last minute." She explained, walking a few steps forward.

The princess turned around, facing Hikari. "I overheard Jafar and a woman talked about finding a keyhole in this world… they're searching for it as we speak." She said.

"A keyhole?" Hikari echoed. She knew about the keyhole and the keyblade, but she didn't want to spill it to Jasmine. She also pretended to be a little lost on the topic. She kind of worked for Jafar and Maleficent, but she was still against every bit of it and try to stay out as much as possible while trying to help everyone as much as she can. "What's that?" she asked.

Jasmine shook her head. "I don't know… they were also talking about seven princesses of hearts and I think I have something to do with it."

"So that's why Jafar is looking for you…" Hikari mumbled. She never heard any of the seven princesses of hearts before. So it was all new information for her. "Why do they need seven?" she asked.

"They say that they wanted to open the final door." Jasmine answered.

"Final door?" Hikari pondered. A final door to what? She kept on thinking, but there's just too many possibilities. She sighed loudly when no thought came to mind. "This is so frustrating… let's go meet up with Aladdin. I bet he found something." She turned around to go back to the town square.

"Wait." Jasmine stopped the brunette. "Aladdin's out in the desert because of Jafar… he told him to look for something and he would spare me in return… but I highly doubt that now." She glanced at the ground, a glum look on her beautiful face.

Hikari groaned. Everything seemed to be against her today. Her eyes widened when she spotted Riku and Maleficent. She noticed them, but they didn't seem to notice her or Jasmine at all. The brunette quickly grabbed Jasmine's wrist and pulled her along to an alley. The two hid behind a stack of wooden craters and held their breath when both Riku and Maleficent passed by.

The brunette peeked out from the box and her eyes watched as Maleficent's robe was no longer seen from her line of sight. They both sighed as quiet as they can.

"You have to stay here… it's not safe for you to go around." Hikari whispered.

Jasmine nodded. "I understand." She watched as Hikari stood up. "Where are you going? It's not safe for you too." She said.

"I know… but my friend is with that lady and I promise to protect him." Hikari smiled.

"Stay safe."

"You too." The brunette nodded and left the alley.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

' _Where is she?'_ Riku thought, his blue-green eyes scanning the empty stalls and alleys. He told her to meet him in the same spot about an hour ago, but it's already passed the time he said and there was still no sigh of her. He was beginning to get worried and impatient at the same time. From Maleficent, he heard that Sora would come to this world and he was not in the mood to face him just yet.

"That friend of yours, child… where is she?" Maleficent asked, almost as if she was reading his mind.

Riku shook his head. "I don't know. Hikari must be around here somewhere."

"Riku!" As if on que, a certain brunette came shouting his name.

Said teen turned around to face the brunette. He gave a stern look as he crossed his arms. The girl placed her hands on her knees for support as she tried to catch her breath. The silver haired teen kept his look as he stared down at the brunette's head. "You're late." He said, straightly to the point.

"I know! And I'm sorry. I have a good reason for being late." Hikari stood up, straightening her posture and gave a sheepish grin. "You see… I was in the market when a monkey came and then some palace guards came too and then we were chased around the market because they think I was a thief, but I met the real thief and then the Heartless came and we were separated and here I am now!" she said in one breath and took deep breath soon after she was finish explaining.

Riku sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "At least it's better than your lame 'alien kidnapping' excuse." He shook his head. He reached his hand out and the dark portal appeared. "Come on, we're leaving." He said, taking a step inside the portal.

"Why the rush?" Hikari questioned.

"I am afraid that the wretched boy is here." Maleficent answered, moving her scepter to Hikari. The green ball on top of the scepter showed a projection of Sora, the duck and the dog in a desert. They were talking and before she could even do a horrible lip-reading, Aladdin and Abu came to view along with a flying carpet. "We must leave at once and let Jafar do his work." She said as she stepped inside the portal first.

Hikari stared at the ground. "Sora's…. here?" She wanted to see Sora so badly, not just from Maleficent's small crystal ball, but in person. She really did miss him. She was too deep in thought that she didn't even realize that tears began to come out from her eyes. She tried to hold the sobs, but her shoulder shook with each sobs she tried to hold back.

"Hikari." Riku called, his expression softened when he saw the look on Hikari's face. He gently pulled her arm from covering her eyes. He pulled the brunette into a hug, wrapping his arms around her in a genuine embrace. "I know it's hard to let go, but you have to accept the fact that Sora has replaced all of us." He said, patting her back.

"We have to move on." Riku added. He pulled back from the hug, but kept his hands on Hikari's shoulder, giving a firm yet reassuring squeeze. "Think of it this way, you still have one big brother who looks out for you." He smiled and cupped Hikari's cheeks with his gloved hands.

The brunette laughed a little. "Yeah… thanks Riku." She gave him a grin as he wiped the tears away with his thumbs. She considered Riku as her own big brother, always taking care of her, although a bit bossy, but he still looks out for her like Sora would. Which is why she would do the same. "Let's go." She said.

Riku gave a nod and held Hikari's hand as they walked inside the portal together.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari glanced around curiously. "I didn't know the castle have a treasure room…"

"That's because we're not in the castle." Riku answered, keeping his eyes straight. "Iago have retrieved the lamp from Aladdin and gave it to Jafar. He wished that the keyhole is revealed and the genie said the keyhole was here, but he didn't specifically say where." He continued.

"Genie?! Seriously?! There's a genie here?!" Hikari exclaimed in disbelief, her eyes seemed to sparkle in the low lighting. She always wanted to meet a genie since she was like four. Well she has a lot of 'to do list' to begin with, but one of them is meeting a genie. "Is the genie a girl? Is it true that her lamp is bigger than it looks? Oooh! Can we use our third wish to wish for three more wishes?" she curiously asked.

Riku turned around to face the brunette. "Hikari. The genie is not here. He's with Jafar and he is a he, not a she. What would you wish for anyway? A lifetime supply of ice cream?" he joked.

Hikari puffed her cheeks out, crossing her arms over her chest. "For your information I'm going to use my wish to see my friend again."

"Do you mean your imaginary friend when you were three?" Riku asked with a teasing tone.

"He's not imaginary! He's real and lost, so I'm gonna use one of my wishes to find him." Hikari said, placing her hands on her hips. She was a little behind Riku and Maleficent, but they could still perfectly hear her talking and babbling. "—and then for my second wish, I'm gonna wish for Kairi to be with us again and for my third wish I would wish for three more wishes so I could wish for my fourth wish—,"

"That's great, Hikari." Riku said. He wasn't really paying attention since it wasn't important. He kept on walking in the dark cave. It was illuminated by a light green color because of the ball on Maleficen't scepter. He paused when he realized that Hikari wasn't talking anymore. "Hikari? Hikari! Don't touch that!" he glanced over his shoulder, only to fin Hikari reaching her hand out to touch a golden kettle.

Hikari quickly retreated her hand back. "What?! It's a golden lamp! It has to be the lamp." She defended, raising her hands up in defeat.

"That's a golden _kettle_ , not a golden lamp. I already told you that Jafar has it and no, there's no second genie." Riku quickly rushed to her side, chiding her like a mother would. "Don't touch it."

Hikari groaned. "Fine… but can I at least take a diamond or two? Mom lost her ring and I want to give her something when all of this is over and—," she saw the look Riku was giving her. "Alright! Alright! Geez!" she sighed.

She cleared her throat and followed Riku again as he turned around to presume his walk. She crossed her hands behind her neck and her eyes glanced around the cave. It was filled with treasures, pile of gold coins stacked up to the high ceiling and priceless jewels here and there. She was distracted. She kept on gazing around, not even looking where she was going. When she turned around to stop walking backwards, she bumped into a pedestal.

"Oops!" Hikari tried to catch the pot.

"Let it fall!" Riku turned back as if he has a sixth sense just for sensing when Hikari's in trouble. The two watched at the pot fell into the pile of gold coins. They both sighed in relief that the pot didn't crack or break. The silver-haired teen crossed his arms, glaring at the brunette who innocently straighten the pedestal without looking guilty. "I thought I told you to not touch _anything_." he repeated, a bit more sternly this time. "You might set up the traps or something."

"I didn't touch it, I bumped into it. There's a big difference between the two words." Hikari made a 'duh' face, stating the obvious.

Riku shook his head as he let out an exasperated sigh. He decided to let Hikari walk ahead of him so he could keep an eye on her. It was a good idea too because she kept on getting distracted by the tiniest things, even the bugs on the wall. Well, she was more scared of the spiders, but he was able to stop her a few times before she triggered a trap. Maleficent suddenly stopped, surprising Hikari as she almost bumped into her.

"It appears that Jafar has led the insolent child here…" Maleficent said.

"What?" Riku furrowed his eyebrows.

"Really?" Hikari blinked, staring at Maleficent's scepter.

Maleficent waved her scepter and a swarm of desert themed Heartless appeared, making Hikari summon her rod. "There is no need to raise your weapon, for they are on our side." She said and the Heartless dashed towards the other end of the cave, swinging their swords mindlessly. The brunette summoned her rod away, but kept on staring at the entrance of the treasure's room. "They shall keep the boy and his company busy while we wait for Jafar." She continued.

Riku glanced over to Hikari and then to Maleficent. "If you don't mind, we'll be going back to the castle." He said.

Maleficent smirked and summoned a portal. "Do as you wish."

"Let's go, Hikari." Riku said as he stepped inside the portal.

Hikari nodded, but before she went inside, she glanced back to look at the cave, a worried look on her face.

' _Be careful, Sora…'_


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: A new chapter and another reminder to read the manga for those who haven't because it will link to the future chapters and the sequels. Just like the previous chapter, that has some elements from the manga :D

Special thans to wwsa1995 for adding this story to their favs!

Lulu9814: Aww thank you!

Guest: Awww thank you so much! I glad you like the manga. Abu's one of my favs too! Hahaha Blafart! I should mention Jafar "Blafart" too! I actually tried to say that in one breath and I ended up out of breath. Ah! I think that's a great idea! I better remember the idea of Genie and Hikari meeting in the future chapter or sequels. I considered putting the Cave of Wonders in the story before, but decided against it, but then when I saw your review, I place it back to the story! So thank you so much!

BlueXRedKnight: haha thank you!

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

Hikari © me

* * *

Chapter 9: escape

"Jafar! Give Jasmine back!" Aladdin shouted.

Sora stood behind the young man, lowering himself to a fighting stance. He was worn out from fighting all the Heartless earlier, but he kept on a strong gaze. It wasn't an hour ago that he faced Jafar and witness the princess get kidnapped and shoved into a spider-like pot. He chased the man down all over Agrabah and over the desert to the Cave of Wonders.

His blue eyes caught the woman standing behind Jafar. "Are you… Maleficent?" he asked, his grip on the keyblade tightening every passing second.

Maleficent kept an expressionless face as she began to disappear, along with Jasmine.

"Wait!" Aladdin shouted as he ran forward to stop Maleficent from taking Jasmine to who knows where. He jumped in order to catch the woman before she fully disappeared. His whole body went through and he fell face first to the ground. He glanced back to where Maleficent and the pot Jasmine was in. It was highly impossible for someone to just disappear right in front of their eyes. "W-What happened? J-Jasmine…" he stuttered, his eyes wide.

Sora's eyes widened as well. "W-Where did Jasmine go?! What did you do to her?!" he turned his head angrily at the man.

"Genie! Please! You have to help us find Jasmine!" Aladdin turned to the blue genie, a desperate look on his face.

Genie closed his eyes. "I'm sorry, Al…"

Jafar laughed. "Unfortunately, he who holds the lamp is the one the djinn has to follow… or have you forgotten this rule, boy?" he smirked, holding the golden lamp close to Aladdin.

"No!" Aladdin tried to swipe the lamp from Jafar's hand, but failed when Jafar raised the lamp above his head and tripped Aladdin with his staff. The young man fell flat on his back, watching the Royal Vizier walk away from his reach.

"Djinn, I believe I've made up my mind for my second wish." Jafar said, he raised the lamp. Sora quickly went to Aladdin's side, his keyblade raised, ready for any attacks Jafar wished for. "Crush these infidels like the rats they are!" he ordered.

Genie balled up his hands into fists as he tried to go against Jafar's wish. "I'm sorry guys!" he apologized before he pointed his finger at Sora and Aladdin. A zap of white lightning came out from his finger. Sora quickly grabbed Aladdin's hand and pulled him to safety. He raised his keyblade and blocked another incoming attack from Genie. "Sorry there, pal!" he apologized as he continued to zap lightning.

"WAK!" Donald yelped when the lightning zapped his bottom. He turned to face Genie, a furious look on his face. "Aw! What was that for?!" he demanded, raising his fist at the blue genie.

"Sorry, ducky!" Genie apologized and snapped his fingers. In a blink of an eye, Donald's wound was wrapped up neatly in bandages.

Jafar stared Genie down with disgust. "You disappoint me, djinn! I shall show you myself the true use of your abilities!" he shouted. He raised the lamp up high above his head. "For my last and final wish, I wish to be your equal! A djinn omnipotent in might!" he screamed out his last wish.

Genie snapped his fingers and the whole room started to shake.

Red smoke began to cover Jafar head to toe. Iago flew away from Jafar's shoulder when his body began to grow in size and change in color. Compared to his previous self, he was now huge and buff in size. His skin color changed to red and his eyes were yellow, similar to the Heartless. He raised his arm and a huge gush of wind brought debris flying all over the cave. Sora used his keyblade to repel every debris that came to their way as Goofy used his shield to cover himself and stopped the rocks from hitting the ones behind him.

"This is it! This is the power that I long sought! Fear me, Maleficent! With such power in my hands, the whole of reality is mine to rule!"

Sora covered his eyes when the wind became stronger. His eyes caught something. "Cover for me!" he yelled over the gushing wind.

"Gawrsh! Sora!" Goofy shouted when he saw Sora running towards Jafar.

The brunet jumped over a gap that was created from the mini earthquake. He swung his keyblade, hitting the rocks like a golf ball. He was aiming at the colorful parrot. Iago kept on dogging the rocks that flew right at him. He flew left and right, yelping when a rock whizzed pass his left wing's feathers.

"Before I move to anything, a little cleaning is in order. Vanish, maggots!"

Sora swung his keyblade one more time and the rock knocked the black lamp from Iagos's claws. The parrot squawked when he let the lamp fall to the ground. He tried to grab the lamp back, but the keyblade wielder took it first. He quickly raised the black lamp above his head.

"Not today, Jafar!" Sora shouted, gaining Jafar's attention. "Get in the lamp, genie! Someone told me that the genie is bound to the one who holds the lamp right? So my wish is absolute!" he continued as he held the lamp at Jafar's direction.

Jafar's eyes widened. "No! This can't be! This is preposterous!" he screamed as the lamp continued to suck him inside. He flailed his arms around and grabbed Iago's tail, taking the bird down with him. "Nooooo!"

Sora smirked as he held the black lamp, tossing it up and down. "Hah! How do you like your new house?" he grinned in triumph. He blinked when something popped out of the lamp. An old paper to be exact. He picked the paper up and read the context. His eyes widened when he noticed that it was one of Ansem's Reports that he was searching for. "It's Ansem's Report!" he exclaimed.

"Sora! You did it!" Both Donald and Goofy jumped at him, wrapping their arms around Sora tightly. Genie joined in their little group, picking them up in one big bear hug. "What you said before was kind of cool too! Didn't expect you to say something cool like that!" Donald laughed.

Sora's left eye twitched. "What does that supposed to mean?"

Genie took the black lamp from Sora. "This lamp needs to be buried!" he huffed and dig the ground, dumping the lamp carelessly before covering it up with dirt.

Sora laughed. "Oh yeah, better not forgot about this." He pointed his keyblade at the world's keyhole and a ray of light was shot directly at the hole. He summoned the keyblade away when he sealed the keyhole. Right after he sealed the keyhole, the whole cave began to shook again. He tried to balance himself, but fail when the shaking was too rough. "What's going on?!" he shouted as the ceiling began to fall apart.

"Everyone on Magic Carpet! Now! Chop! Chop!" Genie clapped his hands and grabbed Sora by his hood, he dumped Sora on the carpet before turning his attention to Aladdin. "C'mon Al! We have to go now!" he shouted.

"But Jasmine—,"

"There's no time to explain Aladdin! Jasmine's no longer in this word! That lady took her to another world!" Sora shouted without a second thought. He quickly helped Aladdin up to Magic Carpet before it flew across the cave, avoiding the falling debris and the pile of gold. As soon as they escaped the cave and into the desert, Sora noticed the glare Donald was giving. The brunet shrugged. "Sorry… it just came out." He admitted sheepishly.

Donald sighed. "What's done is done, I guess…"

"You're saying that Jasmine is in another world? You have to take me with you!" Aladdin said.

Donald shook his head. "I'm sorry… but it's against the rule for us to take someone to another world." The duck apologized. He knew Aladdin's feelings. It was just like Sora all over again, but Sora was a special case.

Aladdin sighed in defeat. "I guess it makes sense… everyone will go wild if they knew they can travel to other worlds…" he said, rubbing the back of his neck. Magic Carpet dropped them in Aladdin's house before he went in himself. The young man sat on a wooden crater, a glum look on his face as he kept on staring at the lamp in his hands. "But it just doesn't feel right to wait here while Jasmine is in trouble…" he continued.

Genie patted Aladdin's back. "Cheer up, Al! You still have one more wish! C'mon wish for Jasmine to come back and it shall be done!" he said enthusiastically, giving his master a wink.

"Genie…" Aladdin began. He let out a small laugh. "Alright, Genie. I wish for your freedom!" he smiled, raising the lamp.

Genie nodded his head. "One Princess Jasmine coming—wait Al!" he protested, but the wish was already granted. The bracelets around his wrist broke into half and the bottom half on his body began to appear, a pair of legs replaced his once legless body. Genie stared at his wrist before moving closer to Aladdin. "Al… why did you wish for that?" he asked.

Aladdin smiled. "I made a promise to use my last wish… to wish for your freedom."

Genie began to tear up. "Oh Al! Thank you!" he embraced the young man, pulling him into a hug.

Sora grinned. "Don't worry, Aladdin! We'll bring Jasmine back to you! We can promise you that!" he said, giving encouragement to him.

"Thank you, Sora." Aladdin nodded his head, giving a smile.

"Hey! You can take my lamp along with you! Just give a rub and I'll be there to help!" Genie tossed his lamp to Sora.

"Alright!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"C'mon Hikari, is this the best you got?"

Riku dodged Hikari's plastic blade.

"No way! I still got more up my sleeves!" Hikari exclaimed, a grin on her face.

After they returned from Agrabah, Maleficent told them to do what they want while she deals with another matter. The two decided to have a little spar. It was long overdue. The last time the two spar was a month before the darkness took over Destiny Islands. Since Hikari's rod was too short, a plastic blade was used as a replacement. It was a little unfair since Riku has the keyblade and she didn't, but a blade's a blade.

Hikari drops down and did a leg-sweep, trying to take Riku's balance. The silver haired teen jumped just in time when Hikari did the sweep. Hikari turned her body around as she sat on the floor. Riku swung his keyblade down and it clashed with Hikair's plastic blade. She held the blade with both her hands since holding it with one hand to keep balance was impossible. Riku's strength was unbelievable! It was almost as strong as the bulky Heartless.

"Ugh! Since when are you this strong?! You were strong before, but dang Riku!" Hikari grunted as she tried to keep the keyblade as far away as possible.

"Training helps." Riku simply said.

Hikari shut her eyes close when she couldn't take the pressure anymore. "Alright! Uncle! Uncle! I give!" she shouted. When Riku finally stopped, the brunette let out a loud sigh as she laid on her back on the cold marble floor. Her chest heaved up and down as she tried to calm her breathing. "Ugh… I never thought having a spar would be so tiring! My muscles are aching!" she complained, staring at the chandelier.

Riku chuckled. "Maybe you didn't train hard enough."

"I went through Phil's super-secret-two-day special hero training! I shouldn't feel this tired after a spar with you!" Hikari said, remembering the trial Phil put her through. Those hundred push-ups and fifty laps around the coliseum were nightmares. She suddenly laughed, surprising Riku who sat beside her. "Maybe that sash is a power booster or something! I don't know why mine doesn't boost anything, but yours must be a power booster! You cheater!" she accused childishly, pointing her finger at him.

The silver haired teen laughed. "Really? It sounds more like an excuse to me." He grabbed Hikari in a headlock and drilled his knuckled to the top of her head, giving his famous noogie. "You never ran out of excuses, huh?"

"Argh! My hair! Uncle! Uncle! Uncle!" Hikari gripped on Riku's forearm. "Uncle, Riku, Uncle! I'm gonna be bald!"

"Not a chance! It's been a while since I've done this!" Riku laughed.

Hikari laughed along as she tried to stop Riku from giving her a noogie.

"I see you scallywags are having fun."

Their laughter died down when someone entered the room.

Riku released Hikari from the headlock. "Hook." He acknowledged the pirate's presence in the room.

"Captain Crabby." Hikari also acknowledged Hook's presence.

Hook took a few deep breaths, his shoulders shaking from the anger he's been holding. The two children obviously didn't know what respect is, especially the girl. She clearly doesn't respect him or his other comrades. "Maleficent asked for you two to come and join our meeting." He said, a strain in his voice.

Riku nodded and he stood up. "C'mon Hikari." He helped his friend up and followed Hook out of the room.

Hikari also followed the pirate, walking beside Riku. She was confused. During her tutelage with Maleficent, she never asked her to join a meeting. She would always ask for Riku to join her, but never once did Maleficent mention Hikari to come and join her meeting. It was only once when she introduced her into the whole group when she was invited. And now all of the sudden, Hook was telling her and Riku to come along. Something was up and she didn't like it one bit.

The two entered the dark room where Hades and Maleficent were waiting. Hikari took a step closer to Riku and he held her hand, giving a reassuring squeeze. "Why did you call us here?" Riku asked boldly.

Maleficent glanced over her shoulder. "It appears that Jafar has been defeated by the wretched boy." She announced, turning around to face the two teens. She waved her scepter at the table and a projection of Sora, Donald and Goofy appeared. They seemed to be boarded on a ship. The sorceress moved her scepter and the projection disappeared. "The boy is becoming more trouble than we thought." She said.

' _Thank goodness.'_ Hikari thought, a small smile playing on her lips.

Hades snorted. "That smarmy vizier could've had em!" he said, crossing his arms. "If someone had stuck around to give him a helping hand." He rolled his eyes and eyed both Riku and Hikari, giving them looks.

Hikari glared back, a frown on her lips. "Hey—!"

"We rather not face Sora at that time." Riku answered for Hikari. "And besides, I did my job. You can't actually blame me or Hikari for Jafar's defeat." He said, his eyes narrowing at the flaming god.

"Can't take a joke, huh?" Hades shook his head, raising his hands up in defeat.

"Jafar was beyond help." Maleficent began. "He was consumed by his own hatred. Once should beware of letting it burn too fiercely." She continued, narrowing her eyes at the ancient god.

Hades took a step back. "Woah, lighten up!" he said. He turned to face both Riku and Hikari, a big grin on his lips. "Anyway, we're not here to actually hear about depressing things about that snake man. We got something special for you two!" he pointed his fingers at the two teens a little too enthusiastic for their liking.

"Huh?" Both Riku and Hikari blinked in confused. Something special for them?

Maleficent stepped forward to the table. "We had a deal, yes?" she said, raising her scepter. She moved her scepter above the table and a projection of a certain girl appeared. "You helped us and we grant you your wish."

"Kairi!" Riku and Hikari stepped closed to the table, staring at Kairi's projection. It was indeed Kairi they were seeing. Hikari couldn't help but let a wide smile spread across her lips. From the projection, Kairi was still the same. She was asleep, yes, but she looked alright. "Is she okay?" the brunette asked, turning to Maleficent.

"You will not know unless you go to her yourself. Go to her. Your vessel is waiting." Maleficent said and motioned her hand for Hook to step forward.

Hook raised his silver hook up to the air, trying to intimidate both Riku and Hikari. "Just remember, this is no pleasure cruise. It won't be a pleasant voyage." He said, sneering at the two.

Riku turned to Maleficent. "Why are you doing all this for us? What's the catch?" he asked suspiciously.

"Catch? What is the catch, you say?" Maleficent took a few strides to reach Riku and Hikari. She leaned the scepter against the table and reached her hands out. She cupped each of Riku's and Hikari's cheek. "That is a silly question to be asked. You are like my children. I only want to make the both of you happy." She smiled, staring at Riku's eyes with a hidden meaning behind them.

Riku slapped Maleficent's hand away and pushed Hikari behind him. "I seriously doubt that." He clicked his tongue.

Maleficent stood back up and took her scepter back. "Believe what you wish. But lest we forget, I kept my end of the bargain." She said, turning her back on them. "I shall expect your return by the time I am finished." She smirked, glancing over to the spider-like pot beside her.

Riku frowned. "Let's go, Hikari." He reached his hand out and a portal appeared.

"Woah! A little advice, kiddo. If you keep using the darkness, it will get to you." Hades warned, his hands on his hips.

"I can control it. The darkness won't take me over." Riku scoffed.

Hikari grabbed Riku's hand. "As much as I hate to admit it from that freak, I think he's right Riku… I think we should use a ship or my Star Shard instead. You look sicker when you use the portal thingy so often." She said worriedly, staring at Riku's eyes, hoping that he would understand.

Riku raised an eyebrow. "I'm sick? You should look at yourself." He pointed out, his eyes showing concern. Before Hikari could reply, he placed his gloved hand on her forehead. He frowned when he noticed the warmth radiating from her forehead. "You're warm. Are you having a fever?" he asked.

"I don't have a fever!" Hikari huffed.

"My hand says otherwise. So this is why you were always complaining that you were tired... Why didn't you tell me sooner?" Riku crossed his arms, giving Hikari a frown.

"I don't even feel it!" Hikari denied. She was feeling a little dizzy since morning, but she just passed it off as a regular headache. "I'm fine! I'm not sick. I just want to find Kairi too." She summoned her rod just to prove her point.

"Hurry up, you little freeloaders! We're leaving!" Hook shouted, tapping his foot impatiently as he waited for the two to come with him.

"Be quiet." Riku snapped, glaring at Hook before his eyes went back to his friend. His eyes softened at Hikari as he gave a reassuring smile. "I know how badly you want to come along, but you have to rest before that fever gets worse… I'll find Kairi and bring her back here. I promise." He ruffled Hikari's hair.

Hikari shook her head. "No, no! I'll come along too! See? I'm fine!" she jumped around and flailed her arms around as she still has a strong grip on her rod. She placed her hand on her hip as she twirled her rod around. "I can rest after we find Kairi. And besides, I can still do spells too. It's not like I'm not focus—," as if on que, her rod shot a flash of lighting as she accidentally casted a thunder spell.

"Hikari!"

"You insolent brat!" Hook took a step forward.

"Ups?" Hikari slumped her shoulders. Her eyes moved to where the Thunder hit. She was worried that Maleficent accidentally got zapped and she would zap her in return, but when her eyes spotted the thing she hit… her eyes widened. She accidentally hit the spider-pot and turns out, it wasn't filled with cookies or Heartless. It was Princess Jasmine. The princess stared at Hikari with equal surprise. "P-Princess?! What are you doing here? What is she doing here?! What's going on?!" a horrified look was seen on her face as her eyes flickered to everyone in the room.

Hades was the first one to respond. "Oh man… the jig is up." He sighed, face palming. "Someone better tell her the truth, because I'm sure that I ain't gonna." He said as he turned to the sorceress.

Maleficent closed her eyes. "You see, child, this princess is the sixth princess of heart." She used her scepter to tilt Jasmine's chin up. Jasmine quickly turned her head away from the woman. She kept her eyes on Hikari as she tried to tell her something, but it was all muffled. "She has one purpose and one purpose only… she will be the one who shall help open the final door." the woman continued.

Hook laughed. "And in order to do that, we need to take her heart!" he said, raising his hook up as it glistened in the low light.

"Not literally of course, because that would be gross." Hades added, a disgusted look on his face. "But I don't mind it either."

Hikari stared at Hades and Hook with a horrified look.

"Don't listen to them, Hikari. They're just messing with you." Riku placed a hand on Hikari's shoulder as he glared at Hades and then his glare was averted to Hook. The brunette glanced over to Riku and his eyes glanced down at the floor. He gritted his teeth as his hand on her shoulder squeezed tighter. "Let's go." He said.

' _Is Riku… afraid of Maleficent?'_ Hikari thought as she stared at him with a worried look. She glanced back at Jasmine and she shut her eyes tightly as she didn't want to see the frightened look on the princess' face. She swallowed thickly as she tried to keep focus. _'What… do I do?_ '

"C'mon toots, let's get you back inside your pot." Hades grabbed Jasmine's upper arm, forcing her to stand up, but the young woman refused.

Somehow the gag around Jasmine mouth was loose. "Never!" she shouted. "I would never help you open the final door!"

"Now this is just ridiculous." Hades reached his hand out.

A sudden gush of strong wind stopped him from proceeding further. The God of Underworld blinked. He lifted his hands up to this head and patted his smooth bald head. It took him a few seconds to finally realize that his flaming blue hair was put out by the wind. His shoulder shook his with anger as he slowly turned around, his whole body burning in red flames.

"WHO DID THAT?!" Hades fumed, his voice raised and flames began to circle him. His flames died down when his eyes caught the one who dares to put his hair out. "You? It was you who did it?!" he shouted.

"Hikari… why did you do that?" Riku asked in a whisper.

"What is the meaning of this, child?" Maleficent asked, her tone surprisingly calm.

"I think I don't need to explain what's the meaning behind this." Hikari said as she lowered her rod. Her gaze was hard as she glared at Maleficent. "You hurt Sora… You hurt Princess Jasmine and you hurt Riku. I won't just stand around when you're hurting my family and friends." she said, lowering herself to a fighting stance.

"Hah! What are you gonna do? There's three of us plus a thousand of Heartless on our side and there's like what? Two of you and this princess over here?" Hades snorted in laughter, mocking the brunette.

Hook unsheathed his sword, pointing it at both Riku and Hikari. "Give up, girl! You're outnumbered!"

Hikari glared. "Take this! Freeze!" She suddenly threw her rod and as soon as it grazed the floor, spikes of ice came out in a second, surprising everyone. She directed the attack between Hades, Maleficent and Hook, who were all beside the princess. The ice spikes separated Jasmine from the three villains, giving her enough space to run without worry. She caught the spinning rod and summoned it away. She quickly pulled out her Star Shard and reached her hand out to Jasmine. "Grab my hand, Princess!" she said.

Jasmine quickly ran to the brunette since no bounds shackled her. The raven-haired woman took Hikari's hand.

Hikari glanced up to the ceiling and she took a deep breath. She hoped that it was high enough. She hooked her arm with Riku's as she held the Star Shard tightly. Her other hand was occupied with Jasmine's hand as she gave a firm squeeze.

"Hikari what are you—!"

"You're toast, brats!" Hades raised his hand and threw fireballs at them.

Hikari shut her eyes tightly, trying to keep focus again.

The Star Shard glow a bright white, covering the three with light. The shard shot up to the ceiling, zig-zagging across and before it hit the ceiling, they disappeared in a bright light, leaving the flabbergasted villains behind.

"That brat! I knew we should've take care of her since the beginning!" Hades yelled, his whole body going back to a red color.

"What do we do? Those scallywags took the princess away." Hook asked as he stared at the door. "My crew will catch those insolent brats." He growled.

Maleficent didn't say anything. She glanced over to where the ice spikes were. A smirk grew on her lips. "We do nothing." She said, turning away.

"Nothing? Are you crazy, woman?! Our plans will be for nothing!" Hades screamed, his anger taking over each passing second.

Maleficent stroked the ice. "That girl… she showed her true potential. Her anger fueled the darkness inside her heart." She said, the smirk still plastered on her lips.

"So we're just going to let them go?" Hook asked as he sheathed his sword and crossed his arms.

"For now, yes."


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: a new chapter! Another reminder for those who have not read the manga yet! There will be a few reference from the manga to this story and the other sequels.

Special thanks to Ijustdon'tcare132 and tl34lt12 for adding this story to their favs!

Special thanks to Ijustdon'tcare132, MangaLover2142, Shiranai Atsune and tl34lt12 for adding this story to their alerts!

Lulu9814: Me too! Let's find out in this chapter!

BlueXRedKnight: yup! It is!

Guest: Yeah it does, doesn't it? haha. Awww thank you and I have a lot of things planned hehe. And yeah, Sora really needs to find Hikari and Riku ASAP! And I didn't find the youtube that you type. Is it the same title?

AllSpark Princess: There's a clue in the manga, I think you can figure it out at first glance when you read the manga ;)

Guest: hehe probably? We'll find out in this chapter ;)

Gry20: Me too!

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

Hikari © me

* * *

Chapter 10: hurt

"—are you alright?"

Hikari slowly opened her eyes. She averted her gaze to her left, where the voice called. Her vision was blurry, all she could she was a massive blob standing above her. After a few seconds, her eyes adjusted to the light and were focused once more on the figure. A black-haired woman was looking at her in concern. At the sight of the girl waking up, the woman sighed in relieve, a hand on her chest.

"I thought you were hurt…" The woman said.

"Princess…" The brunette blinked as she tried to remember. Her head was pounding and her whole body aches. She sat up, rubbing the back of her neck. Her eyes glanced around her surroundings. It was grassy, she noted, with flower fields here and there and a forest too.

"How are you feeling?" Jasmine asked as she noticed the pained look on the girl's face.

Hikari groaned, but nodded her head anyway. "I feel a little sore, but other than that… I'm okay." She lied. Her head was still pounding and her body burned from her fever. Something clicked inside her mind after looking at the princess. Everything was coming back to her. Agrabah. Princess Jasmine. Princess of Hearts. Maleficent. She remembers now. "Did we make it?! Did we get out of the castle?" she questioned, turning her head to Jasmine sharply.

Jasmine smiled. "We did. We are in a different place now." She said as she gestured their surroundings. She watched as Hikari gave a sheepish look for just noticing that they were in a whole new world. The fresh-air and the green scenery was something that was missing at Hollow Bastion. It was dark and gloomy there. The brunette didn't even dare to open her room's window to breath the morning air. Too much flying Heartless. "Hikari… I would like to thank you again, for saving me this time. If it wasn't for your help, I don't know what would happen." She said, her eyes casted downwards to her own hands on her lap.

Hikari cleared her throat as she tried to hide a cough. "Well… we're friends and friends help each other, right?" she said.

"Yes, that's right." Jasmine smiled.

Jasmine shivered from the cold forest breeze. It was close to sundown and the temperature began to drop in the forest. She was used to the hot desert rather than the climate in the forest. Another thing was that her clothes aren't actually appropriate in this kind of weather. In the desert they wear less to keep cool, but here… she doesn't think she'll ever survive if there were no fire or shelter. It was a whole new environment for her to adjust which would take some time.

"Oh! Sorry princess…" Hikari quickly took off her jacket and placed it around Jasmine's shoulder to keep her warm. "Sorry I didn't realize you were cold…" she apologized yet again, a sheepish grin on her face.

"But aren't you cold too? Your face is surprisingly red… I think you need it more." Jasmine stated as she kept on staring at Hikari's red cheeks and dry lips. It was true that the brunette was a having a fever and the cold wind didn't help one bit, but the princess didn't need to know that.

Hikari laughed. "This is just sunburn! Desert and all…" she simply waved the worry away. She was glad that Jasmine bought her act. She really didn't want the princess to worry anymore. It was a rough day for her. "Besides… friends help each other!" she laughed, reminding Jasmine that they're friends.

Speaking of friends, where is Riku anyway? Her eyes looked around and spotted a head of silver sticking out in the forest. A boy with silver hair stood near the trees, leaning against one of them with his arms crossed and his eyes closed. "Riku…" she knew that look, he was mad.

Jasmine leaned closed to Hikari. "He's been like that ever since I woke up… he wouldn't talk to me." She whispered as both the girl's eyes were fixated on the young silver-haired teen. "Maybe you should talk to him." She suggested.

"Yeah." Hikari stood up and as soon as she stood up, the world seemed to spun around her. It was her headache that almost made her lose her balance. She quickly regained her balance and gave Jasmine a sheepishly look. She made her way towards her friend, dusting the grass blades off her clothes. She tried her best not to look nervous, crossing her hands behind her head in a laid-back manner. "Hey Riku—," she began, a smile on her face.

"Why did you give your jacket to her? You need it more." The silver-haired boy cuts in. "You know that you're sick." He added.

"Princess Jasmine needs it more." Hikari simply said, blinking confusedly at the question. "What is this—,"

"We need to talk." Riku quickly cuts in. The brunette flinched at the tone and she quickly averted her eyes elsewhere, refusing to meet Riku's sharp blue-green eyes. His eyes glanced over to where Jasmine sat and he quickly looked away. "Alone." He said, pushing himself off the tree bark.

"Alone? Okay, cool. It's cool." Hikari followed the silver-haired teen deeper into the forest.

On the outside, the brunette seemed to keep a cool and innocent expression, but her eyes showed something else. Her eyes kept on darting from one place to another. A sign that she was scared and nervous. Her heart was pounding against her chest. She could even hear her heart beating faster every passing second. The forest became denser and denser, until there was little sunlight passing through the leaves. The air felt cold and damp from the lack of sunlight. It doesn't really help with the situation around the two teens too.

Riku stopped walking. "What is she to you?" he asked, his back facing the brunette.

Hikari blinked. "Princess Jasmine? She's a friend—,"

"A friend? A _friend_?" Riku emphasized, his voice strained. He turned around this time, his eyebrows furrowed down and his lips twisted up in a scowl. "You've only known her for less than a few hours and you already consider a stranger your friend?" he half asked half shouted.

The brunette took a step back, flinching at Riku's harsh tone. "S-She was nice to me and she told me all about what Maleficent and the others are planning!" she shouted back, a frown at her lips because of the doubt Riku was giving to her new friend.

Riku clicked his tongue. "This is what I don't like about you. You're too trusting, Hikari! Just like how Sora is!" he said, as he stepped forward. He kept on walking as Hikari kept on backing away to give some space between them. He cornered the brunette to a tree with only two steps apart from each other. "He trust two complete strangers and before you know it, he ditched his old friends and they became best friends!" he continued, his hand clenching tighter and tighter.

"You trust Maleficent too! And she's a really shady person!" Hikari countered.

"I don't. You heard what I said." Riku narrowed his eyes.

Hikari remembered what Riku said. "You said you don't, but you'll go along with it if she finds Kairi for us." She summarized, a frown on her lips. It was true that Maleficent has found Kairi. The brunette was grateful that Maleficent found Kairi, but she was mad that she was going to use her new friend as a key to some sort of final door that will probably lead to a room of nothing! She can't just ditch a friend in need. Her blue eyes stared at Riku's knuckles. If it wasn't for his gloves, his knuckles would be as white as snow. "But Riku, don't you see that she's—,"

Riku slammed his fist beside Hikari's head, crushing the tree bark behind her.

"She knows where Kairi is! Did you ever think of what will happen if they capture Kairi because of your little stunt?!"

"I—I…" Hikari's eyes were wide and her lips were slightly parted open.

Riku stared Hikari down. The brunette was stammering and her eyes watered. He lets out a sigh of frustration as he looked away. He retreated, taking a few steps back to give Hikari some space. What he said and how he said it were a little too far for her, but she deserves it. She really needs to learn how to read a situation and think things through before acting it on her own. The silver-haired teen took a deep breath as he waited for her to give a respond.

The brunette hung her head low. "…I'm sorry…" she said, barely in a whisper, but Riku heard it. "I'm sorry…" she apologized again, silently wiping her tears.

The keyblade wielder sighed. "There's nothing we can do to turn back time. What's done is done." He said as he turned away to the direction where Jasmine was waiting for their return. He stared at the path, a frown on his lips. "We _have_ to take the princess back and hope that Maleficent will let this slide." He took a step forward.

"Ri-Riku!" Hikari tried to grab his hand, trying to stop from taking another step further. Her head suddenly felt heavy. It almost felt like someone was pounding her head with a hammer. Riku's hand slipped out of her reach. She fell to her knees as she cradled her head, trying to stop the pain. Her head was spinning and her vision began to blur. A blurred image of Riku was growing smaller and smaller as he walked further away. "Wait! Stop!"

The brunette reached her hand out, trying to reach out to him.

"Wait… please… Riku…"

It was the last thing she said before she blacked out.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Jasmine was beginning to worry. The two teens haven't been back for a while. What if they were lost? Or worse? She began to walk back and forth, her hands clutching the jacket tighter. Her shoulders tensed when she heard rustling leaves from the other direction. She whipped around to the direction of the noise and let out a sigh of relief when she found that it was only Riku.

"There you are… I was worried that you were lost." Jasmine said, smiling.

Riku didn't said anything except he proceeds to walk closer.

Jasmine squinted her eyes when she noticed that a certain girl was missing from the boy's side. "Where's Hikari? Is she alright?" she asked.

Riku didn't stop walking. "She's out…" he said, his eyes showing more emotions than anger.

Jasmine's eyes widened. "You don't mean…" she trailed off as she took a step back. She kept on backing away as Riku kept on walking towards her. The black-haired woman gritted her teeth and her hands were curled up into tight balls. "How could you! She's your friend! How could you do that to her?!" she shouted, glaring at the boy.

Riku clicked his tongue, his face scrunched up in disgust. "You don't know anything." He said, his voice low and threatening.

Black swirls began to circle the ground from where he stood. The inky black color pooled beneath his feet as swirls began to circle and rise, waving in every direction. A few types of Heartless emits from the ground, their head twitching left to right. The Heartless stood there alongside the boy, waiting for his command. He snapped his fingers and the Heartless lunged forward to the Princess.

Jasmine tried to outrun the Heartless, but more appeared to block her way. She flinched when a few Heartless grabbed her wrists to prevent her from running and struggling. She turned her head to glare at Riku. "She trusted you and you're just going to throw her trust away? She just wanted to protect you!" she yelled.

Riku narrowed his eyes. "More like the other way around." He reached his hand out and a dark portal appeared. He stepped inside and the Heartless who were holding Jasmine captive followed him. He continued on walking, ignoring Jasmine's shouts and struggles. How can Hikari throw away Kairi for someone like this girl? Kairi was better and she was friends longer with Hikari than this princess. So why did she choose to protect this princess than her best friend? The silver-haired teen closed his eyes when the end of the portal came near. He stepped out of the portal into the dark room, his Heartless summons following him.

"You have returned."

"I brought the princess back."

Maleficent smirked. "Excellent." She said and waved her staff for the Heartless to take Jasmine away. They both watched as the Heartless took the Princess of Heart to a different room, her shouts were now muffled and no longer heard each passing second. The dark mistress turned her attention to Riku who were still looking at the door where the Heartless and the Princess disappeared to. "And your friend? Where is she?" she questioned.

Riku tighten his fists, his knuckles turning white. "Hikari's…not the same." He answered, looking away.

"Is that so?" Maleficent raised an eyebrow. "It appears that your friend could not control the powers inside her heart." She said.

Riku turned to look at the woman. "What do you mean?"

"The dark power has taken over her whole heart, making her weak both in terms of physical and spiritual." Maleficent explained, turning away to look at the table. She knows that it wasn't the truth. Hikari wasn't sick because of the darkness, she was sick because she really is sick. But with this situation, it was easy to convince the boy that his friend was ill because of not being able to control the darkness. If she can convince the girl to tap more into the dark powers, defeating the keyblade brat would be easier. "Perhaps that is the reason why she is so ill and confused." She added.

The silver-haired teen's eyes widened. "Is that true?" he asked, taking a step forward.

The woman smirked. "You do wish to help your friend now, do you not?" she asked, turning to face the boy. She placed her hand on his shoulder. She saw how Riku's eyes sharpen and his lips curled into a frown. "Help her control her darkness and she shall be the girl you once knew." She smiled.

The keyblade wielder frowned.

If that's the only thing that could help Hikari go back to the way she was, then so be it.

* * *

A/N: It's a bit short, but I hope you guys like it! I just thought that it was right to end it there? Hehe

Please give thoughts to what you think of this chapter!

See you next chapter


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: I was actually sick when writing this chapter haha! But don't worry! I'm back to my healthy self!

We reached the final page of Little Adventures. So what do you guys think of the manga I made? Should I continue to chapter two?

SilentLullaby: she's 13 at the start of KH1 ^^ a year younger than Sora and Kairi, and two years younger than Riku

Lulu9814: Thank you ^^

Tl34lt12: Sorry, but both Roxas and Xion won't appear until the next story ;) which I hope will be soon posted after the first one is finished…

Guest: Thank you for the link ^_^ and thank you so much! And I agree with you! Sora has to find his sister before things get worse!

Gry20: I don't know why, but me too…

Special thanks to xXYuseiXAkikoXx, Light Twilight Darkness, YuyaKnightwrite97 for adding this story to their favs!

Special thanks to ericfinnvladimir for adding this story to their alerts!

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

Hikari © me

* * *

Chapter 11: betrayal

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"Hey, Hikari?"

The brunette hummed in respond, enjoying the breeze. "Yeah?"

"What would you do if someday we were separated from each other?"

Hikari glanced over to her brother, giving him a frown. "That's a really odd question…" she said. The young girl hummed, crossing her arms over her chest. Sora's question was really odd, but she decided to answer anyway. "Well, I would search for you even if I have to go looking through the whole universe!" she spread her arms out, a grin on her face.

Sora laughed. "I would to!"

"What makes you ask that anyway?" Hikari asked, tilting her head curiously.

The brunet grinned sheepishly. "Well… do you remember the lady that visited the island two years back?" he asked and his sister gave an uncertain nod. She was young, but she remembered a woman with blue hair and weird clothes. She can't really remember the woman's face, but if she met her again, she might remember again. "I suddenly remembered what she said… and it got me thinking…" he trailed off.

Hikari stared at her brother and smiled. "I know! Let's make an oath!"

"An oath?" Sora echoed, a curious look on his face.

"Yeah! Like… _'Whatever happens, we will always stick together'_!" Hikari suggested, giving the first oath.

Sora caught on. "And… and how about _'if one of us is lost, we will search till we're together again'_!" he exclaimed, his face bright and excitement was shown on his expression.

"Oh! _'and we will always hug after every fight'_!" Hikari grinned, holding Sora's hands.

Sora laughed. "The last one is kinda random, but I like it! Let's make it official like those shows mom and dad always watch." He said and glanced around to find Kairi and Riku to be witnesses to their little Oath. "We just need Kairi and Riku to see us say it and it won't ever be broken!"

Hikari nodded her head. "Let's call it… the Sibling Oath?"

"Sibling Oath it is!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari slowly opened her eyes.

"Oh! Thank goodness you're awake." A feminine voice exclaimed in relief. The brunette's vision slowly focused on the figure of a young woman. She hovered above her, a smile on her red painted lips. The young woman squeezed a small cloth to get rid of the excess water before placing it on top of the brunette's forehead. "You gave me quite a scare, you know. Your temperature was so high that I could bake a pie from it." she joked, giggling a little.

Hikari blinked. "Who are you?" she asked drowsily.

The young woman smiled before she stood up and gave a curtsy. "I'm Snow White and you are?" she introduced sweetly.

"Hikari…" Hikari gave Snow White the best smile she could muster. "Where am I anyway?" she asked, her eyes darting around the room from where she laid.

"You're in my friends' house, the seven dwarfs." Snow White said as she sat on the chair beside the bed. She took the cloth from Hikari's forehead and dipped it into the bucket on the small nightstand. "How are you feeling?" she asked, placing the cloth back on the sick girl's forehead.

The brunette groaned. "Better than before, I think… thank you."

"You must be hungry. I'll go and prepare you the porridge I made." Snow White said as she stood up.

Hikari watched as Snow White exited the small room. A small smile slipped passed her lips. Snow White was the kindest people she ever met! She helped a total stranger and even offered to give her some food. She was glad that Snow White found her and brought her here to the troll sized cabin. It was small, but it was better than having no roof at all. Her head turned from left to right. Her eyes widened when she saw another girl, laying soundlessly asleep on a bed. Her red hair stood out from the rest and there's only one person she knows that has red hair.

"Kairi!" Hikari quickly threw away the covers and stumbled over to Kairi's bed. She kneeled beside Kairi's bed, staring at Kairi's peaceful face. The brunette shakily placed a hand on the unconscious girl's cheek. It was cold. Her eyes moved a little lower and saw Kairi's chest heaving up and down in a steady pace. She felt tears building up in her eyes, threatening to spill. She was overjoyed when she found Kairi lying beside her, but at the same time she was scared of finding that she was in a coma-like state. "Kairi… what happened? Who… did this to you?" she asked, tear spilling down her cheeks.

Snow White came with a tray of food. She saw Hikari kneeling beside the red-haired girl's bed, silently sobbing into the sheets. She placed the tray down before approaching the heartbroken brunette. The young woman placed a hand on Hikari's head, running her fingers through her hair to try and calm her down.

"Is she a friend of yours?" Snow White gently asked.

Hikari gripped on the sheets and nodded her head, yes.

"She must be a really important friend to you." The young woman continued. "I'm sure she wouldn't want you to be sad like this."

The brunette lifted her face to look at Kairi before glancing over to Snow White. "…I know… but… what happened? I want to know what happened to Kairi." She said, wiping the tears away as she sniffled.

Snow White shook her head. "I'm afraid that I don't know either… she was found like this out in the woods and she has been asleep ever since." She placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. Hikari kept on staring at her hands when Snow White placed something in her hands. It was a charm made out of shells. The brunette's eyes widened at the Thalassa charm. "We found it beside her… and I thought you should be the one who will return it to your friend when she wakes up." She smiled.

"This is…" Hikari stared at the Thalassa charm, smiling a little. She moved her fingers, tracing over the details. Her blue eyes stared at the face drawn on the shell and on the middle of the charm, a crown shaped pendant was glued on. It looked similar to Sora. "I remembered this… She made this charm a week before we set off… I guess she added the face at the last minute." She laughed.

Snow White gave the brunette an encouraging smiled.

Hikari smiled at the Thalassa charm and wiped the tears away with the back of her hand. "Don't worry, Kairi… I'll protect you." Her eyes glanced down to her sleeping friend. She held Kairi's hand and lowered her head a little, her eyes closed. "I promise to be beside you when you wake up… and Sora will be here too! I'll find him!" she lifted her face up and grinned.

"A-And Riku too." Hikari hesitated, but Riku is her friend too and she won't give up on him either, even if he decided to go back to Maleficent.

Snow White giggled. "She is very lucky to have a friend like you." She complimented, making the brunette sheepishly rub the back of her neck. The black-haired woman helped Hikari up to her feet, holding her hands as she guided her back to bed. "But if you want to find your friends, you must rest and eat first. You can't go on with a fever and an empty stomach." She chided, giving the bowl to the girl.

Hikari stared at the bowl on porridge and then to the young woman, who sat beside her. "Thank you… really. You're really nice." She said, taking the wooden spoon up to her mouth. She blew a few times to the spoonful of porridge before putting it in her mouth. "This is really good! Thank you! I'm feeling better already!" she exclaimed, grinning from ear to ear.

Snow White giggled, clasping her hands together. "Oh, I'm glad that you find it delicious."

After a few more spoonful of porridge, the brunette placed the bowl on the nightstand. She left almost a half-full of the meal. Don't get her wrong, it was delicious, but her stomach was already full by the fifth scoop. She drank the glass of water and placed the glass next to the bowl. She felt a little bad about not finishing her food and right after she said it was delicious. She wanted to grab the bowl again to eat a couple more spoonful, but her caretaker stopped her.

"Don't force yourself if you don't want to eat." Snow White smiled. She stood up and grabbed the bowl. "Perhaps something sweet would make your upset stomach feel better." She grabbed a plate of pie from the tray, giving it to the brunette

"Err…" Hikari stared at the pie. It was delicious looking and smelled good, but her stomach doesn't want to accept any more food. She decided to took a bite from the pie, just to show appreciation. She blinked when she chewed the piece of pie. It was good. Really good. "It's really good! If only I wasn't so sick, I would eat the whole pie." She placed the pie back down to the plate and placed it on the nightstand.

"You and them all! It took me awhile to make them share the pie." Snow White laughed.

"Them?" Hikari echoed.

"Oh yes! You haven't met them yet. They should be back right before lunch." Snow White stood up, gathering the leftovers to put them on the tray. "Which reminds me, I should get started to set the table." She said, walking down the stairs.

Hikari stared at the small door, her eyes moving back to look at Kairi before she got up from the bed to go down the stairs. She wanted to be beside Kairi all the time, but she can't just let the kind woman do all the work. Sure she was sick and the guest, but that doesn't mean she can't help Snow White prepare the table. Besides, she was still in the same house as Kairi. No harm done.

The brunette glanced down from the staircase. It was indeed a house fit for dwarfs. She could even touch the roof while she stood on the stairs.

"Oh! You should be in bed!" Snow White exclaimed when she saw the brunette staring at her. She wiped her hands on her apron as she walked up the stairs to tuck the brunette to bed. "You're sick and you should rest."

Hikari shook her head. "No, it's okay. I'm feeling a lot better." She grinned. Back at Destiny Islands, she would always try to skip out on her chores and play the lynch game with Sora. But now, after all that has happened, she missed doing chores for her mom. Maybe when all of this is over, she could do her chores more often to make her mother happy. "There must be something that I can help you with… You were so nice to me and I can't just let someone as nice as you do all the work." She said.

Snow White looked unsure. "But you're our guest…" she placed her hand on the girl's forehead, feeling the heat radiating to her palm. "And you're still sick."

Hikari laughed a little. "I think I can handle anything! I'm better now! That pie really boosts up my strength!" she showed Snow White her arm, showing her 'muscles'.

Snow White shook her head, a small smile on her lips. "If it's not too much… you could help me set the table while I prepare the food." She said. "But if you feel tired, it's back to bed to you, missy." She placed a hand on her hip, waving her finger in a motherly way.

"Sure! No prob!" Hikari gave a thumbs up. She went to the cabinets, taking out the tableware. She stared at the empty chairs. Setting up the table like this, reminded her of her family back at Destiny Islands. Mom would ask her and Sora to set the table while dad was already seated as he waited for the siblings to finish. Her mom would place the homemade food on the table and she and Sora would always try to be the first one to try out the food. The brunette shook the memories away, trying to focus back on setting the dwarfs' table. "So… how long have you been living here anyway?" she asked out of the blue.

Snow White stirred the soup, "Well, I live here years ago for a short time, but after the castle was attacked by monsters, my friends offered to let me stay with them." She explained as she threw one more firewood to the fireplace.

"Oh…" Immediately, the brunette knew that it was the Heartless.

"There we go! Now all we have to do is wait for them to come home." Snow White exclaimed as she took off her apron. The table was set and the meal was ready. They just need to wait for the seven dwarfs to return from the mine.

A minute passed and soon it was a whole hour and Snow White was beginning to worry. Hikari was sitting on the small chair as she watched Snow White walked back and forth to the window to check if the dwarfs came back or not. Her eyes kept on following Snow White's movement. She was getting dizzy watching her walk around the small space.

"Oh dear… I do hope they're alright…" Snow White sighed, placing a hand on her cheek.

"Maybe they just decided to take a detour?" Hikari said, frowning a little

"It isn't like them to miss out on lunch." Snow White sat on a chair, a worried look on her face.

Hikari stared at Snow White. She closed her eyes and placed her own hand on her forehead. Not that hot. A little lightheaded, but the world wasn't spinning anymore. "Snow White… Where do the dwarfs work?" she asked, getting up from the chair. "I'll make sure they get back here." She continued.

Snow White stood up. "Oh no! You can't simply go! You're sick and you have to rest. I can't let you walk into the woods alone. There are monsters in there." She said in a motherly way.

The brunette grinned. "I feel fine and besides, I have this." She summoned her rod and rest it against her shoulder, giving the woman a thumbs up. "I'll be back soon with the dwarfs. You can trust me."

Snow White looked unsure, but she gave in after seeing the look on the brunette's face. "Alright… I can't stop you… They work in the mine. There's a path from here that will lead you to through the forest. You have to go to the mountain trail and head north from there."

Hikari nodded. "Please take care of Kairi for me." She said as she opened the door, glancing back to smile at the young woman.

Snow White nodded her head. "Yes! Of course! But before you go, please have this. It's a bit windy in the mountain trails." She placed on her blue and red cape around Hikari, tying the cape around her neck.

Hikari stared at the cape around her and pulled up the hood. "Thanks." She said and turned around, only to hit her head on the low doorframe. "Ow! Oh man… This is why I hate small places…" she rubbed her forehead as she leaned down slightly to fit the door.

The brunette closed the door behind her and stared at the path to her right. She took a deep breath before going straight for the path, her rod held tightly in her hands. She wanted to get to the dwarfs as quickly as possible and get back to the cottage to be with Kairi again. She just found her and she wasn't going to let anyone take her away.

' _Kairi…'_ Hikari took Kairi's good luck charm from her pouch, staring at it. She remembered everyone who she held hands with slipped away from her. Her mother, Jasmine… Riku. The brunette closed her eyes, bringing the Thalassa charm close to her chest. _'I won't let you get taken away… This time, I won't let anyone slip pass.'_ She placed the charm back into her pouch, continuing to walk the mountain trail.

She continued to walk up the trail, heading north just like what Snow White instructed. As soon as the mine's entrance came to view, her eyes widened at the sight of Heartless swarming the entrance. She quickly ran closer to the Heartless and raised her rod. "Thunder!" she casted.

Strikes of lightning strike the Heartless, making them disappear. "Great! Now I got your attention!" she exclaimed, positioning herself to a battle stance. The Heartless lunged at her, swinging its claws. She dodged the attack and smacked the Heartless with her rod. "Blizzaga!" she shouted and there were less Heartless in the field.

Hikari continued to cast spells and kept on swinging her rod to hit the Heartless. "Take this!" after the last Heartless disappeared, she kneeled down to catch her breath. "Glad it was over…" she mumbled as she tried to get back to her feet.

The brunette stumbled a little before she regained her balance. She glanced over to the entrance before entering the mine. She kept walking further inside. Her eyes widened when she reached inside the mine. It was beautiful. The walls were covered with colorful and bright jewels. Even in the low light, the jewels seemed to glow. She went to the walls of the cave and touched one of the jewels.

"Wow… so pretty." Hikari said, smiling.

"Hold it, 'ya thief!" a voice startled her.

The brunette turned around in time to block a rock thrown at her way. She hit the rock with her rod and stood defensively. She glared at the one who threw a rock at her. "Why did you threw that rock for?! I was only looking and I'm not a thief!" she shouted in complaint.

"Oh really? Well I don't believe anything you said!" The grumpy one out of seven replied. His eyes glanced over to the rod in Hikari's arm. "A witch! She's a witch!" he exclaimed, pointing his finger at her.

"I ain't a witch, you troll!" Hikari shouted angrily, pointing her rod at him.

"A troll? Why you little—," The grumpy one began.

"Little?! I'm taller than you!" Hikari retorted, balling up her fist threateningly at him.

Another dwarf stopped the grumpy one from marching to Hikari. "Wait just a second! Look closely! Don't you see that she's the vi-visible—visitor!" he said, placing his hands on his hips.

"Now that you mention it… she kind looks like the one at our cottage." A sleepy one said drowsily.

The one with glassed walked towards the brunette and took his hat off. "Greeting! I'm Doc! This is Grumpy, Happy, Sleepy, Bashful, Sneezy and Dopey! It's a plum—parley—pleasure to meet you!" each of the dwarfs gave their own 'hello's, except Grumpy, all he did was snort to greet the brunette. "May I ask what are you doing here, my dear?" he asked, placing his hat back on.

"I'm Hikari." Hikari nodded her head. "And I came to pick you up. Snow White's really worried." She said, leaning slightly down.

Doc tapped his temple. "Hikari? Have we met before?" he asked.

Hikari blinked and shook her head. "Nope, I don't think so…" she relied. She tried to think back when she met seven trolls—dwarfs, but her memories were vague, blurry. She shook her head, shaking the thoughts away.

"How did you get pass the monsters?" Bashful asked as he twiddled his fingers.

Hikari raised her rod. "With this of course and I'm _not_ a witch." She emphasized, narrowing her eyes directly at Grumpy, who only grunted in reply.

"Oh thank goodness! Now we can go home!" Happy exclaimed, a bright smile on his face.

"Y-Yeah." Sneezy nodded his head in agreement.

Dopey clapped his hands, jumping up and down in excitement.

"We're very grateful, my dear! Those monsters won't leave us alone!" Doc crossed his arms and motioned his hand for the rest of the dwarfs and Hikari to follow him out from the mine.

Grumpy grunted and pushed his way pass Doc and Hikari, walking in front. "Stop your yapping! Let's just get going and go home already!" he said.

Hikari clicked her tongue, crossing her arms. "Really… Rude much?" she huffed, puffing her cheeks out. She escorted the dwarfs out from the mine and not six feet from the mine's entrance, a few Heartless came out of nowhere, surprising the little group. "Heartless!" she said, standing in a battle stance.

Grumpy went back to Hikari's side, standing behind her. "Well? What are you waiting for?! Aren't you supposed to protect us?" he angrily shouted, glaring at the girl.

The brunette gave an amused look. "Look who came back running for help." She teased, glancing over her shoulder to look at the dwarf. She glanced back to face the Heartless and raised her rod in time to cast a shield around her and the dwarfs hiding behind her. She revered the shield and glared at the Heartless. "Go! I'll handle them!" she ordered.

"You don't have to tell me twice!" Grumpy said as he ran first to the forest, followed by the other dwarfs. "Do be careful, my dear!" Doc added as he ran away.

Hikari nodded before turning her attention to the Heartless. "Alright, I'm sick and I don't have time for you bug-eyed freaks!" she raised her rod, glaring at the swarm of Heartless before her eyes. "So let's make this quick!" she ran forward, throwing her rod at one of the Heartless.

The brunette jumped to avoid the Heartless claws. She grabbed her rod in midair while she turned her body to land behind the Heartless. She smacked the Heartless with her rod and turned her attention to the next. She casted Aero and a vortex appeared, sucking up the Heartless into the whirlwind. She pointed her rod at the vortex and used Thunder to destroy the Heartless.

She sidestepped to the right when a Heartless swung its sword at her. She blocked the sword and held her ground. She pushed the Heartless away and threw her rod at it. The rod went through the Heartless and it spun around the clearing, destroying the Heartless in its way. The rod went back to her hand and she position herself back to a stance. She still has a few more to defeat.

"Firaga!" Hikari exclaimed as she ran forward. Two rings of fireballs spun around her and destroyed the Heartless when she neared the Heartless. The fireballs began to disperse into thin air right after the last Heartless was finished. She sat on the ground, panting as sweat began to fell down like waterfall. "I should… really get back." She forced herself to stand up.

Hikari stumbled a few times as she crossed the forest. It was hard trying to focus when the headache returned. She raised her head up when she neared the cottage. She could see the seven dwarfs panicking as a few Heartless began to chase them around. She forced her legs to run and smacked the first Heartless that was chasing Dopey.

"What's going on here?" Hikari questioned, taking a few deep breaths.

Dopey jumped around, waving his arms frantically.

"Slow down! I don't understand a thing!" Hikari tried to calm the dwarf down. She grunted when she felt a Heartless jumped on her back. She quickly grabbed its arm and threw it off her shoulder. She narrowed her rod at it and casted a fire spell. "Hold on while I kill these Heartless." She said to the dwarf.

Hikari helped the dwarf one by one, killing the Heartless with her magic. The dwarfs hid behind her as she casted one last spell to destroy the last remaining Heartless in the cottage clearing. She huffed and stood up to her full height, summoning the rod away as she turned to face the seven dwarfs.

"What happened here?" Hikari asked.

"Those monsters were attacking the cot—cottage and Snow White was nowhere to be found!" Doc said frantically.

"What?!" Hikari's eyes widened as she ran inside the cottage. She glanced around the small space looking for the young woman. "Snow White?! Where are you?" she shouted into the room.

"We tried doing that…" Sneezy began. "A-And it didn't work." Bashful continued.

Hikari glanced over to the pie smudged on the floor. "Snow White…" she whispered, her eyes showing regret that she left the woman alone. She snapped her head to the stairs. She quickly went up the stairs and slammed the door open. Her worries were washed away when Kairi was still tucked in bed. She walked closer to the bed and stared at Kairi's face. "Thank goodness…" she sighed in relief.

"You know what? This is your fault!" Grumpy accused, pointing his finger at Hikari.

The brunette turned around, furrowing her eyebrows at the dwarf. "What? How is it my fault?!" she asked.

"Your friend there is probably the one who led those monsters here! And with you around there's double the monsters!" Grumpy shouted, marching closer to the girl.

"You can't just say that because we're here!" Hikari countered, glaring at the grumpy dwarf.

Grumpy kicked Hikari's shin, making her yelp. "Just get out! And take your friend with you! You're not needed here!" he jabbed his thumb over his shoulder, pointing at the door. He turned to the other dwarfs. "Don't tell me that you fools believe that this isn't her fault!" he placed the blame on the girl.

Sneezy sneezed once. "I think Grumpy's right…" he said.

Hikari was taken aback. She took a step back, closer to Kairi. "What?"

Doc took a few steps forward. "I'm sorry, my dear… but I'm going to ask you to please leave." He said, a little timidly. "We really don't want to be rude to you, but please give Grumpy and us some time." he continued.

The brunette stared at Doc and then to the other dwarfs. "Fine." She gave up and kneeled beside Kairi. She took off Snow White's cape and placed it around Kairi instead. She gently grabbed Kairi's forearm and carried the unconscious girl on her back. "Thanks anyway." She thanked as she stopped by the door.

The dwarfs followed her outside and they waited by the door. "And don't come back!" Grumpy shouted.

Hikari turned to look at the dwarfs. "No matter what you say, I'll find Snow White. I promise." She lastly said before she walked away from the cottage and to the forest.

"Please help as much as you can." Doc replied.

The brunette sighed as she entered the forest, walking further away from the cottage and from the dwarfs. She closed her eyes as she continued to walk into the forest. It was quiet. A little too quiet, but she didn't mind the silence. She needed the silence. Her thoughts were a mess and her head was pounding. She just can't think straight at the moment. She waited till she was out of the forest to use the Star Shard. She wanted to get out of this world and look for Snow White, but she needs to think straight first before she could use the Star Shard again.

"Hikari," the brunette spun around when she heard her name being called. Her eyes widened when she found the least person she expected. Her grip around Kairi's legs tightened a little as she took a step back.

"Riku…" Hikari whispered, staring at the silver-haired boy.

Riku gave her a smiled, his eyes softening. "I've been looking all over for you… I thought you were lost again." He said, taking a few steps forward. Hikari stood her ground, staring at Riku as she frowned. She was scared that he might try something funny, but she didn't move back. Riku's blue-green eyes traveled to the girl on her back, sleeping soundlessly. "Kairi… so you've found Kairi." He said, his smile widening a little.

"Yeah…"

"That's great, now we can be together again. Just us three." Riku said, offering his hand for Hikari to take.

Hikari looked confused. "Three of us?"

"Duh. Did you forget to count yourself in again?" Riku chuckled. "I heard it from Maleficent. I'll help you control it. I promise I would." He said.

"Control what?" Hikari blinked, her eyes squinting to focus on Riku.

"The darkness. It's what keeping you from being you." Riku frowned. He kept staring at Hikari and Kairi, his eyes set only at them. From the trees and bushes, Hook's crew began to jumped out, blocking any possible exit routes. The brunette gasped in surprised as she turned around to count the number of crews. Her gaze went back to Riku, staring at him in disbelief. Hook stood beside her friend, along with Maleficent. "Join me, Hikari… You'll be safe with me." He smiled, offering his hand for her to take again.

Hikari took a step back, shaking her head. "Riku… Don't you see?! There's nothing wrong with me! They're just using you!" she shouted, trying to knock Riku back into his senses. She missed the old Riku where he would tease and sometimes play pranks with her. She missed the good old days where they were together, spending their days playing in the beach. If this is what it means to travel around the outside worlds, she would rather be stuck in the islands than have their friendship broken. "Please Riku! You have to snap out of it!" she pleaded, her voice breaking in each word.

"This is just the darkness taking her over, child." Maleficent said.

Riku nodded his head in agreement. "Hikari, don't worry… just let me handle things and everything will be alright, okay?" he stepped closer to her.

"Riku…" Hikari lowered her head. "I… I won't let you take Kairi!" She raised her head, a new determined look came across her features.

"Hikari… you're making this harder than it should." Riku summoned his keyblade. He raised his keyblade above his head, positioning himself to his signature battle stance. "I'm going to set things right, even if I have to fight you!" he shouted.

Hikari wanted to cry. She didn't want to fight Riku. She really didn't want to fight her friend. She lowered herself, but didn't summon her rod, due to the fact that Kairi was still on her back. She didn't want to put Kairi down. Those pirates might snag her away from under her nose if she lets her guard down just for a second. She kept her eyes on Riku's movements that she didn't even notice a Heartless sneaking up on her. She turned around just in time to jump away from the Heartless' claws.

Hikari staggered when she landed, falling to her knees. She could feel the weight on her back being lifted. "No… Wait! Stop!" she reached her hand out when one of the pirate took Kairi away from her. She stood up, but failed as she only went back to her knees, her vision blurring again. "Don't… Kairi…" she mumbled.

"Careful with her." Riku snapped at the pirate who carried Kairi back to where he stood. He stared at Kairi's face, tucking a loose strand behind her ear. His blue-green eyes gaze back to Hikari. He walked closer to her and leaned down, offering his hand for her to take. "Hikari, don't fight it. You have to accept it. Accept the power of darkness inside your heart."

"Snow White… why did you take her away?" Hikari asked, her voice wavering.

Riku blinked once, frowning. "Are you still thinking of someone you just met?" he questioned, but he decided to answer anyway. "She was needed. I had to do it."

"Had to? Snow White's not a princess! She's just a really kind girl who likes to help people out!" Hikari balled up her hands, her shoulder shaking from anger.

Maleficent smirked. "Why, indeed she is… but does her friends repay you for the respect you deserve? I think not."

"It has nothing to do with Snow White!" Hikari snapped at the woman.

"Hikari… you have to stop doing this. You have to stop trusting people so easily." Riku said, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Riku…" Hikari moved Riku's hand off her shoulder. She lifted her chin up, staring at Riku with tears streaming down her cheeks. Her gaze was full of emotions. Hurt. Disbelief. Betrayal. "Are you blind?" she summoned her rod, surprising the silver-haired boy.

Hikari lunged forward, swinging her rod directly at her friend. Riku raised his keyblade to block the surprise attack. He lost his grip on the handle of his keyblade, making it flew away from his hand. His eyes widened as he jumped away from Hikari, skidding to a stop as he stared wide-eyed at his friend.

"Riku… I want to save Kairi too. But not like this! This is just wrong!" Hikari said as she picked up the keyblade. She raised the keyblade and pointed it at the original wielder. "You said that I have to stop trusting people, but it's you who should stop trusting shady people!" she furrowed her eyebrows, glaring at Riku.

"Stop her!" Hook shouted.

Hikari ran forward, the keyblade still in hand. She avoided the pirates as she made her way to Riku. She swung the keyblade at him, but he dodged her attacks easily. She was upset. She didn't want to fight him, but what other choice does she have? She pointed the keyblade at him and casted Blizzard. The block of ice surprised him and she used that moment to swiped him off his feet.

"Riku… you have to snap out of it." Hikari panted, staring down at her friend.

Riku glared at Hikari, his blue-green eyes narrowing at her. "You snap out of it."

"Riku…" Hikari held her head when the image of Riku began to spin. Her eyes widened when Riku suddenly sprung back to his feet.

The brunette took a step back, avoiding a punch. Riku moved his foot, tripping the brunette to release his keyblade. He took the keyblade back and Hikari rolled away. He struck it to the ground where she once laid. She quickly scrambled back up to her feet, completely out of breath. She kept on dodging Riku's swings as she summoned her rod back in hand. She blocked his attack continuously.

Hikari brought her rod to protect herself when Riku lands a kick to her stomach. She landed on the ground with a loud thud as the air was knocked right out of her lungs. She groaned as she tried to stood up.

"Give up." Riku said as he walked closed to her, his voice dark.

Hikari lifted her head up. "Riku…"

The brunette lowered her head, her whole body shaking. She glanced down when something glowed inside her pouch. She shakily reached her hand to pull out the glowing item. Her eyes widened when it was the Star Shard that glowed.

In a blink of an eye, she disappeared into the sky.

Riku stared at the sky, watching as the light disappeared.

"Worry not child… At least you still have one more friend that you could trust." Maleficent spoke, appearing beside Riku.

Riku glanced over to his keyblade and his grip tightened. One question kept on repeating in his mind.

How was Hikari able to hold the keyblade?

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

It was a quiet day in Traverse town. No Heartless attack happening and no Leon practicing. It was a really quiet day in the town.

Aerith was walking towards the hotel in the second district. She had to figure out the Ansem's Reports Sora got for her. So far there were only seven, but she believed that there were more than just seven reports. She glanced up to the sky when she saw something out of the ordinary. A shooting star was heading straight down for Traverse Town. It crashed into the ground, the light blinding her for a brief moment.

The young woman ran to the railing and stared down at the object. Her eyes widened when she finds out that it was a person, a girl instead. She quickly abandoned her task and helped the girl as her first priority. The brunette ran down the set of stairs to reach the lower level of the second district.

Aerith kneeled down beside the unconscious girl and her eyes trailed to the object in her hand. "A shard?" she blinked and turned the girl over as she cradled her head as gentle as she can. "You're…" her eyes widened when she recognized the familiar face.

The brunette quickly lifted the girl up to her back. She headed straight for the hotel, planning to inform both Leon and Yuffie of her findings.

The girl groaned when Aerith moved her.

"Don't worry… you're safe now."


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Sorry for the late update! I lost all date and had to type everything up again! Tell me what you guys think about this chapter ;)

BlueXRedKnight: yes, at least she's safe ^^

Lulu9814: thank you! And yup, keyblade xD

DisneyFreak-Lover: thank you! ^^

Guest: Awww thank you! I'm planning to continue drawing Little Adventures ^^ and thank you so much!

Gry20: me too...

Jack Whitty: Ummm that's quite a lot haha

Erikfinnvladimir: I hate it when he does that too... And Apa kabar? Saya baca profil kamu. Saya juga orang Indonesia, jarang-jarang ketemu orang Indo di FF haha

Special thanks to Keyblade132, YuyaKnightwriter97, blueorchid7, lawren03 and Forgetful Insanity for adding this story to their favs!

Special thanks to Halkyone and Forgetful Insanity for adding this story to their alerts!

Kingdom Hearts © Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

Hikari © me

* * *

Chapter 12: reunion

Sora sighed as he glanced out the window of the Gummi Ship. Another world explored and still no sign of Kairi and Hikari. He had found Riku, although his best friend is a bit...different, but he knows that he's alright. Kairi and Hikari on the other hand, he doesn't have a single clue about them.

"What's with the long face, Sora?" Goofy asked as he noticed Sora's worried look.

The brunet leaned against the chair, slumping into the seat. "...It's just that... Another world locked and still no sign of Kairi and Hikari." he said, voicing out his worries. "I'm really starting to worry..."

"Cheer up, Sora. We'll find them." Donald said, glancing back to look at the boy. The brunet could only give a nod and a small smile at his words. He has faith that they will someday find the two girls, but then again, he still have his doubts. The duck turned back to look at the front, but his eyes widened at the sight of something blocking the ship's way. "WAK!" He exclaimed in surprise, making the other two jump in respond.

"What is it?!" Sora jumped up front his seat to approach Donald. He looked at the direction where Donald is pointing speechlessly. His eyes widened two. "Is that a giant whale?!" he shouted when the giant whale opened its mouth widely to swallow the ship.

"Turn around!" the brunet yelled at Donald to turn the Gummi Ship around from the whale's mouth.

"I'm trying!" Donald snapped.

"A-hyuk!" Goofy exclaimed as a giant shadow was cast over them.

The trio glanced up only to find that they were already inside the whale's mouth. When the whale shut its mouth, everything shook and all source of light was gone. Sora held onto Donald's seat as he braced himself for impact. He fell to the floor and rubbed his bottom as he tried to get back up to his feet. His blue eyes glanced around to see if his friends are hurt. He sighed in relief when they were all alright.

"Everyone okay?" Jiminy asked as he jumped on Sora's head. Everyone nodded in reply at the cricket's question.

"Gawrsh... Where are we?" Goofy asked as he rubbed his head.

Donald squinted his eyes to get a better look out the window. "It looks like we're in the whale's stomach." he concluded.

Sora's eyes widened. "No way! There's no way a whale's stomach is that big!" he said in disbelief. "I wanna check it out!" he continued as he exited the ship to see for himself.

The brunet's eyes widened when he stepped out of the Gummi Ship. They were indeed inside the whale's stomach. His blue eyes glanced around, counting the wrecked ships inside the large stomach. There were many broken ships around the stomach as his own was one of them. He jumped down from the Gummi Ship to one of the woods floating in the water. He stumbled when the wood wobbled. He regained his balance before jumping from one floating wood to another, to reach the only ship that seemed to be the source of light inside the stomach.

"This is so freaky..." Sora said as he glanced around. He knows that whales are huge, but he didn't know that one can grew into this big!

"Ah! I found it!"

The brunet turned his head when he heard a voice talked. He blinked when he saw a boy holding a Gummi block. A boy and a Gummi block in a giant whale's stomach? That's unusual, even for him.

"Pinocchio?!" Jiminy exclaimed when he saw the familiar wooden boy. The well-dressed cricket jumped from Sora to the wooden boy, a concerned look on his face. "What are you doing here?" he asked.

The wooden boy, Pinocchio, smiled at the sight of the cricket. "I'm looking for these things to help Papa build a ship!" he raised the Gummi block above his head, staring at the strange piece of shard.

"WAK! That's ours!" Donald exclaimed at the sight of the Gummi block.

Pinocchio held it away from the duck. "No! It's mine!" he said and his nose grew longer. Sora's eyes almost bulged out when he saw the boy's nose grew longer. It was weird enough that a puppet can talk and walk, but it was even weirder to see his nose grew a few inches longer and the brunet seen weird things everyday. "Huh? I didn't lie..." he tilted his head in confusion.

Jiminy jumped onto Pinocchio's nose. "Admitting something that isn't yours is not only stealing, Pinocchio." he chided.

Pinocchio lowered his head in shame. "Oh... I'm sorry. I won't lie ever again." as soon as he said that, his nose went back to the size it was before he lied. He smiled as he touched his nose. He gave the Gummi block back to Donald and tilted his head in confusion at the newcomers. "Who are you guys anyway?" he asked.

Jiminy smiled. "They are the boys that I'm babysitting! They're quite the troublemaker."

Sora's eye twitched, but he held back a retort. "Hey, nice to met you. I'm Sora. They're Donald and Goofy." he raised his hand and shook hands with Pinocchio.

"Hello!" Pinocchio raised his hand to the other two.

"Pinocchio! There you are!" Sora turned his head when he heard a new voice. A middle aged man came running towards them, a worried look plastered on his face. He lifted Pinocchio up and pressed the boy against his chest, giving a hug. "I was worried! You didn't came back, so I came looking for you." he placed the boy back to his feet, his hands on the boy's shoulder.

Pinocchio smiled. "Father! Meet Sora, Donald and Goofy!" he introduced as he dragged his father closer to Sora.

"Nice to meet you, sir." Sora greeted, a grin on his face.

Gepetto smiled sadly. He shook hands with the three and pushed his round glasses up to the bridge of his nose. "You three too? It's a shame that you ended up being swallowed by Monstro like us too. My name's Gepetto, Pinocchio's father." he said as he lead the three friends back to the ship where he and Pinocchio reside. He directed his hand for the three friends to sit on the crates as he also sat on one of the broken crates. "We're collecting these Gummi blocks and if I have enough, I might be able to build a ship and fly us out of Monstro." he said as he raised the Gummi block for everyone to see.

Sora laughed nervously. "Haha yeah..." he already knew how to get out of the whale's stomach, but he can't really tell Gepetto that he has a ship that can travel to other worlds.

Pinocchio jumped off from his seat, running off deeper into Monstro's stomach. "I'm gonna look for some more of these blocks! See you guys later!"

"Be careful Pinocchio!" Gepetto shouted to his little boy.

Not a minute later, Pinocchio's scream could be heard.

Gepetto quickly ran towards where he heard his son's scream with Sora, Donald and Goofy running behind him. Their eyes widened when a cage-like Heartless trapped Pinocchio inside its belly. The Heartless quickly moved deeper into the stomach, disappearing into darkness. Sora summoned his keyblade and stopped Gepetto from running after the Heartless.

"Sir! Please let us handle this!" Sora said as he turned his head to face Gepetto.

The old man hesitated to let Sora and his friends handle this, but he knows that he couldn't defeat that monster alone. "Alright... But please... Please bring me back my boy..." he pleaded, slumping down to his knees. "He is my light..."

Sora nodded his head with a determined look.

He will bring Pinocchio back to his father.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"So you found her in the Second District about a day ago?" Cid asked as he stood beside the bed, staring at the unconscious girl. He crossed his arms as his eyes glanced over to the Star Shard on the nightstand before his eyes moved to look at the girl's face. Her face was scrunched up in pain as sweat kept on running down her forehead. He couldn't help but feel really worried. "Geez! She looks like she's in a lot of pain…" he said in sympathy.

Aerith nodded. "Yes…" she confirmed to the man while she dipped the cloth in the basket of water, squeezing the excess water before placing the cloth back on the girl's forehead. "And she's been resting ever since." She continued.

Yuffie leaned closer to look at Hikari's face. "Come to think of it… she really does look like Sora." she concluded, clasping her hands behind her.

Cid slapped Yuffie on the back of her head. "Of course she is! Both of them are related for Pete's sake!" he grunted.

"Aw! Watch it old man!" Yuffie glared, placing her hands on her hips.

"Ssssh! Please keep it down." Aerith turned to both Yuffie and Cid, pressing a finger to her lips to shush the two loudest people in the room. A groan came from the girl as she stirred in her sleep. The young woman quickly turned her attention to Hikari as she tried to hum her back to sleep. It didn't work when Hikari slowly opened her eyes to look at her. "How are you feeling?" She couldn't help but smile when the brunette finally opened her eyes.

"I remember you… but not your name." Hikari said hoarsely, staring at the woman with half-lidded eyes. She remembered this kind woman. She was the first one to explain to her about the whole concept of a world made for refugees from the Heartless.

Aerith smiled. "We haven't introduced ourselves quite properly when we first met. I'm Aerith. It's nice to meet you, Hikari." She introduced as Hikari sat up, letting the cloth fall from her forehead to her lap.

"You know my name..." Hikari trailed off. She didn't remember telling this woman about her name. The brunette took the cloth from her lap and stared at it, her mind still a bit blank.

"Yes." The kind young woman took the cloth from Hikari and placed it on the nightstand. "This is Leon, Yuffie and Cid. They're friends of mine." She said, directing her hand to each of the names she said.

Leon grunted in reply. "Hi."

"Welcome to world of living again!" Yuffie laughed, giving a two finger salute.

"Nice to see you awake, kid!" Cid grinned, crossing his arms over his chest.

Hikari nodded her head in greeting. She turned to look back at Aerith. "How do you know my name? I never told you mine." She blinked, tilting her head in confusion.

"We met your brother. He told us about you and he wouldn't shut up!" Yuffie said, placing a hand on her hip. It was true. When Sora described how Hikari looks like and how her behavior is, he wouldn't shut up! It took Leon to cover his mouth to make him stop and Yuffie couldn't be more glad. She was chatty, but not that chatty! "If he won't shut up that he couldn't find you, then I want to know what he would do when he does find you!" the black-haired ninja grinned.

The brunette's eyes widened. "Sora's looking for me?" she asked, her expression lighting up like a million watt.

Leon nodded, "He is and it'll be a lot easier if you would just _stay_ this time." he emphasized, making his point. From Merlin's side of the story, he could conclude that Hikari left a few minutes earlier than Sora.

Hikari grinned sheepishly as she rubbed the back of her neck.

Aerith sat on the bed, making the brunette turn her attention to her. "Hikari, do you mind if I ask what happened to you before you got here?" she asked, a small frown on her lips.

The brunette lowered her gaze, recalling the memories. "I was fighting… with Riku." She admitted.

"Riku? Isn't that the other friend Sora's looking for too?" Yuffie cuts in, furrowing her eyebrows.

"Why were you fighting him, Hikari?" Aerith asked.

"He…" Hikari seemed to hesitate at first to tell them the truth, but then again they do know Sora. "I tried to tell him, but he wouldn't stop listening to Maleficent."

"Maleficent?! That witch?!" Yuffie shouted, surprising the brunette.

"You know her?" Hikari asked the black-haired ninja.

Yuffie crossed her arms, a frown on her lips. "That no good witch is the one who caused all of this mess!"

"Yuffie. Calm down." Leon furrowed his eyebrows, his blue eyes staring at Hikari. A frown appeared on his lips. "What were you doing with Maleficent?" he sat on the chair beside the bed and crossed his legs. "Please explain from the start." He said, urging Hikari to continue.

"I don't know how Riku found Maleficent, but he was the one who introduced me to her." Hikari admitted, rubbing the back of her neck. She cleared her dry throat and Aerith gave her a glass of water for her to drink. She thanked the young woman before continuing with her story. "I just go along with her since Riku was there… but then I found out that she was going to use seven Princesses of Hearts to open this Final Door." her grasp around the glass tighten at the thought of Jasmine and Snow White.

"Princesses of Hearts?" Aerith remembered from the new reports Sora sent her that there were mentions of princesses in one report.

Cid scratched the back of his head. "Why do they need princesses to open a door anyway?" he could never understand what's going on in that witch's head. Years back, that witch simply conquered a whole world just to make it as her evil castle. Since then he had been here in Traverse Town, helping people in need with Leon, Aerith and Yuffie. "They can do that on their own, right?"

"Maleficent said that their only purpose is to open the final door. I'm guessing that only they can open the door." Hikari said, glancing over to Cid.

"What is that witch planning now?" Yuffie mumbled, crossing her arms.

"It's not just Maleficent… There's five more, but I guess Sora defeated Jafar. So that makes five left in total?" Hikari counted with her fingers, making sure she counted all of the members.

Leon placed a hand on his chin. This is all new information to him. "I'll look more into this. At the meantime, you should get some sleep." He pointed his finger at Hikari as he stood up. He walked towards the door and stopped by it to glance over his shoulder. "Yuffie. Cid. Let's go." He said and he left the room with the two following behind him.

Aerith and Hikari were left alone in the room.

The older brunette saw the worried look on Hikari's face. "Don't worry, you're safe now. Maleficent can't reach you here." She placed a reassuring hand on Hikari's shoulder, giving a warm and gentle smile to calm the girl down. Maybe the girl was worried about her brother. The young woman sympathized the girl. The girl only wanted to find her family and friends. She didn't sign up for this sort of thing. "Cid will contact Sora to come back to Traverse Town immediately. You will see him soon." She continued.

Hikari smiled a little. "I'm not worried about Sora… I know he's okay." She reached her hand out to grab her belt and dug her hand inside one of the pouch. She took out Kairi's Thalassa charm, staring at it with a frown on her lips. She traced her thumb over the charm, the same frown still on her face. "I'm more worried about Riku and Kairi…" she said.

Aerith stared at the brunette with a small smile. "I'm positive you and your brother can save them, but now, just rest, okay?" she said as she placed Hikari's belt along with the charm on the nightstand before tucking the girl into bed. "I'll be working right here if you need anything." She said as she pointed her finger to the desk across from the bed.

Hikari gave a nod and turned to her side. She closed her eyes, trying to go back to sleep.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

It was later that day when both Merlin and Fairy Godmother decided to visit. They just heard what happened from Cid and they both rushed to see if their student is okay. When they reached the hotel room, they found Hikari wide awake, talking to Aerith about cure spells. The brunette saw her two teachers and waved her hand happily in greeting. She was feeling a lot better when Aerith gave her that potion to drink.

"Oh you poor dear!" Fairy Godmother sat on the edge of the bed, staring at Hikari with a frown. "Are you hurt?"

"I'm okay! I'm feeling a lot better now! Sorry for making you all worry." Hikari laughed, giving the Fairy Godmother her best smile. She was now. All she needed was a good rest and some medicine to get her body back working to a full hundred percent. She glanced over to Merlin. She returned empty handed to him when she promised she would find those missing pages for his book. "I'm sorry I didn't get those pages you wanted, Merlin…" she said with an apologizing smile.

Merlin simply waved his hand, dismissing the thought. "No worries! I've asked your brother to find them for me too!" he smiled. He squinted his eyes as he spotted a different from when he last saw the girl. He lifted his finger and the jacket Hikari gave to Jasmine has magically returned, but it was different than the previous one. It was more detailed and the fabric was lighter for her. "I knew something was missing!" he dusted his hands and smiled proudly.

Hikari tugged on her new jacket and stared at the details. "Thanks Merlin!" she grinned at the old wizard.

"You're welcome, my dear. Oh! Yes! It's almost time for tea." with a snap of the wizard's fingers, a table appeared out of thin air. It was filled with light snacks and cups of tea. Two chairs appeared for Merlin and Aerith since both Hikari and Fairy Godmother are sitting on the bed. He waved his finger at the teapot and it poured tea into everyone's cup. "Now tell us about your journey. I'm curious to know." He took a sip from his tea before placing it on the saucer.

Hikari began at Wonderland, telling them all the craziness the world has. She told them everything, the people she met and things that happened around her. The story goes on cheerfully, but when she got to the part of meeting Maleficent, both Merlin and Fairy Godmother tensed. She told them the spells Maleficent taught her and they were glad that she only mastered the basic and good ones, like Barrier and Esuna.

The brunette paused for a moment as she remembered an important part of her fight with Riku. When she fought him, she somehow wield his keyblade without it returning to the real owner. At that time, she didn't think much of how she could hold the key, but as time passes and as she began to think deeper, a thought came into mind.

"Merlin… can I ask you something?" Hikari called the old wizard. He hummed in reply and waited for her to continue. The brunette stared at her right hand, opening and closing her palm. "Is it possible… for a keyblade to be held by another person beside it's wielder?" she lifted her chin, staring at the wizard for an answer.

Merlin blinked. "That's a peculiar question…" he trailed off as he began to think of an answer to give. He cleared his throat and crossed his arms. "While there are many qualities a keyblade wielder must have in order to harness the keyblade's power, the main requirement is for one to have an exceptionally strong heart." he explained.

An exceptionally strong heart?

Hikari placed a hand over her chest.

She wondered if she really does have a strong heart.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"What the-!"

Sora's eyes widened when he saw Riku pulling out Pinocchio from the Heartless' stomach. The last time he saw his best friend was at Traverse Town and he hasn't heard anything from him ever since. Not until now anyway. His blue eyes stared at Riku with a disbelief look. The silver-haired teen's gaze was different somehow. Somehow, when their eyes met, his eyes seemed to hold something. Anger. Jealousy. And hatred...

Sora furrowed his eyebrows when he noticed that Pinocchio was unconscious. "Riku! What's wrong with you!" he shouted to his best friend. His grip on the keyblade tightened as he lowered himself slightly down to a fighting stance. "Do you even know what you're doing?!" he continued.

Riku narrowed his eyes. "I was about to ask you the same thing, Sora." he began, glaring at the brunet with a frown on his lips. His eyes glanced over to the keyblade in Sora's hand before his gaze was averted to meet with Sora's eyes. "You only seemed to be concerned about running around and showing that keyblade of yours for the whole world to see." he said bitterly.

There was a moment of silence between the two best friends before Riku decided to asked another question. "Do you even want to save Kairi?" he asked.

Sora frowned. "Let go of Pinocchio!" he quickly switched the subject. He wants to save Kairi badly, but right now, he has to focus on what's in front of him. And that's bringing Pinocchio back to his father.

Riku sighed. "A puppet that has lost its heart to the Heartless. How odd for a puppet like this one to have a heart in the first place, right?" he said, glacing over his shoulder to look at Pinocchio. "Maybe it holds the key to help Kairi." he continued, turning back to look at Sora.

The brunet's eyes widened. "What do you mean? What happened to Kairi!?"

"Sora..." Riku didn't answer Sora's question. Instead, he asked another one. "Who is more important? Kairi? Or this puppet?" he asked seriously.

Sora's grip on the keyblade tighten.

"What? You want to fight me because you want to save a puppet that has no heart?" Riku asked.

"Heart or no heart, at least he still has a sense of right and wrong!" Sora snapped, glaring at his best friend. He lowered himself to a fighting stance, raising his keyblade to fight against his own best friend. "It's clear to me now that you're on the wrong side!" he shouted.

Riku stared at the brunet. "I see it now... You both are the same." he said as he summoned the corridor of darkness behind him. He pulled something out and threw it into the air, letting gravity take over. Sora stared at the item he threw up. It was a jacket, a torn and dirtied jacket. The brunet averted his gaze back from the jacket to focus on his best friend. "You both protect something that doesn't really matter and yet... You both still admit that you want to protect the ones close to you."

Sora furrowed his eyebrows at Riku's words. "What do you mean?"

The corner of Riku's lips twitched. "Can't tell? I guess another thing in common between you two is your denseness." he snorted in amusement. He finally decided to answer to spare time. He knew how slow Sora is when it comes to guessing people. "Like brother, like sister... And now..." he trailed off when he saw Sora's eyes widened.

"What did you to her?!" Sora snapped, glaring at the silver-haired teen.

Riku frowned, recalling back the memories from the previous days. "Hikari can't handle the darkness and she refused to submit... Now look at what happened." he stared at the torn and dirtied jacket. It was the jacket she gave to Jasmine and Hades had the nerve to give it to him. He stared at the jacket with distaste. He remembered when she attacked him with his own keyblade. "You can go on and join her while I'll go and save Kairi." he said, stepping inside the portal.

Sora reached his hand out. "Riku! Wait!"

The Heartless quickly blocked his way from reaching his best friend. The brunet gritted his teeth, glaring at the Heartless. His eyes glanced over to the jacket on the surface of Monstro's stomach before his eyes gazed over the Parasite Cage. Donald and Goofy stood by his side, determined to fight the Heartless. Jiminy quickly went to Pinocchio's side, trying to wake the wooden boy up.

Sora dodged rolled away to avoid getting smacked. He narrowed his keyblade at the Heartless and cast Blizzard. He jumped up and swung his keyblade at the Parasite Cage, hitting the stomach multiple times. He raised his keyblade when one of the tentacles was headed his way. He flung back and landed on his back.

"Aw! That hurts!" The brunet complained as he sat up, rubbing the back of his head.

"Cura!" Donald cast as he pointed his rod at the injured brunet. "Focus, Sora!"

Sora nodded and stood up. He charged at the Heartless at full speed. He jumped up and slashed the Heartless down. He huffed tiredly as he watched the heart float up into the air and disappeared. Usually it took them awhile to defeat a Heartless this big, but this time... It's took them less than five minutes. He was glad that the Heartless was defeated quickly, but at the same time it was a bit suspicious.

The brunet turned his attention to the jacket. He walked closer to the piece of clothing and picked the jacket up. It was worrying to see that only a piece of his sister's clothes survived the darkness. He brought the jacket closer and held it against his chest. He really didn't want to believe that Hikari had fallen to the darkness and disappear to become one of those Heartless, but he has his doubts.

Donald and Goofy stared at Sora worriedly. They wanted to comfort him, but they don't really know what to say. It was already sad to see the cheerful boy so heartbroken like this.

"Hikari..."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari laid on the bed, completely bored. She was feeling better in each passing second. The potion Aerith gave her did its charm. Her head wasn't spinning anymore and her body wasn't all sore. She felt great, even more great than before she was sick. To think it only took a potion and a good rest for her body to work a hundred percent again.

"Ugh! This is so boring!" the brunette groaned, sitting up on the bed. She jumped off the bed to walk around the room, stretching her joints. She turned to face the young woman who was busy trying to figure out the Ansem's Reports her brother got. "Hey, Aerith… can I go around town and explore a bit?" she asked, crossing her hands behind her head.

Aerith turned around in her seat. "I don't see why not." She looked at Hikari from head to toe, finding that the brunette was no longer sick. The young woman stood up and walked closer to the girl. "You can look around the shops and buy anything you like. Do you want me to come with you?" she kindly asked as she gave 500 munny to the girl.

Hikari took the munny and shook her head. "Nah… Don't worry. I can see your work pilling up on you." She tilted her head slightly to look at the papers around her desk.

Aerith nodded her head. "Just try not to fight any Heartless, okay? I know you're feeling a lot better, but don't push yourself." She said with a smile.

"Okay! See you later, Aerith!" Hikari said as she excited the hotel room. She walked straight to the exit and took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh air. She glanced up to look at the starry sky as she stretched her arms above her head.

One of the first things she noticed when she first arrived in the world is the never ending night sky. The color of the sky never changed. She missed the sky in Destiny Islands that would turn blue in the day and various shades of red and orange in the evening. Almost two weeks has passed and still no sight of anyone she knew from the island, other than Riku and Kairi. Could it be possible that they had turned to those Heartless? She shook the negative thoughts away.

 _'Think positive! Think positive!'_ Hikari thought, patting both her cheeks with her hands. She decided to browse around the Second District before moving to the First District. She window shopped, looking at the items being displayed. It was interesting to look at shops that sell sword, rods and other magical items. The seller was also interesting to look at. A floating white bear thing with a big red nose. _'I... wonder what I should buy for Sora? I bet he would like this!'_ she held a fire resistance ring. She remembered that her brother sometimes complained about the heat at Destiny Islands. _'Does this thing work like a sunblock or something?'_ she thought.

"That will be 1000 Munny, kupo!" The floating creature chirped happily.

"What?! What a rip off!" Hikari complained, staring at the creature with a disbelief look.

"Hey! I'm running a business here, kupo! Not a 100 Munny shop!" The Moogle huffed in returned. "Cheapo, kupo!" he added.

Hikari puffed out her cheeks. "I'm not cheap! Your stuff is just too expensive!" she glared, pointing her fingers accusingly at the creature.

"So you want it or not?" the Moogle asked.

The brunette fished out another extra 500 Munny, the one she had been collecting from killing off the Heartless. "Here! I can't believe there's no special newcomer discount!" she handed the munny to the Moogle with a frown.

The Moogle chirped happily. "You came here days ago, so no newcomer discount!"

The brunette huffed at her defeat and decided to leave the Second District for the First. She shoved her hand into her pocket as her other hand tossed the ring up and down like a coin.

"Father! Father! Look! It's Sora!" a cheerful voice shouted. Hikari glanced up and was surprised when a boy tackled her. She grunted when the boy hit her. His body was hard! What is he made of?! Woods? She held the ring inside her palm and shoved it into her jacket's pocket as her other arm was occupied holding the boy from falling. "Funny meeting you here so quickly!" the boy giggled behind his hands.

Hikari looked confused. "Uh..." she blinked, staring at the boy. She never met him and she would remember if she met a boy that's made out of wood who can walk and talk. "Do I know you, kid?" she asked, putting the boy down to his own feet.

The boy blinked. "Huh? Don't you remember me?" He asked.

Hikari kneel down in front of him and grinned. "Nope! But I'm Hikari. Nice to meet you kid." she introduced, holding her hand out.

"Pinocchio! Don't go off running on your own!" a man, who Hikari concluded that he's the boy's father, came. He huffed, placing his hands on his knees. "Next time, you have to wait for your father, okay?" he chided.

"Okay, father... But look! I found Sora's clone, Hikari!" Pinocchio pointed his finger at Hikari's nose.

Hikari leaned her head back a little when Pinocchio's finger was right in front of her nose. "Sora? You know Sora?" she asked the elderly man.

"I'm Gepetto. It's nice to met you, Hikari." The man blinked and he squinted his eyes. "Are you perhaps related to Sora, my dear?" he asked, fixing his glasses.

The brunette nodded. "Yeah. He's my brother. Do you know where he is?" she asked eagerly.

Gepetto shook his head. "I'm sorry, my dear, but unfortunately I don't know... We were separated when Monstro sneezed us out." he apologized, giving a small smile.

Hikari sighed, but returned the smile. "It's okay... So are you new here?" she decided to change the subject.

Pinocchio nodded his head. "Uh-huh! We just moved in today! We live there!" he pointed his finger at the direction to where he and his father are staying in Traverse Town. "A man helped us moved in! I think his name is Lion or something." he tapped his chin, trying to remember the man's name.

"It's Leon." said man corrected the boy. The tall brunet appeared behind the three, his arms crossed. His blue eyes glanced at the three and stopped at the girl, who gave him a sheepish look. "I thought I told you to stay in one place?" he sighed.

"Well... Technically, I'm still in Traverse Town... So..." Hikari trailed off and cleared her throat. Leon can't really blame her for leaving now right? At least she was still in the same world and not traveling to another using the Star Shard that can take her to who knows where.

Leon sighed, shaking his head. "Well... At least you're still here." he said, crossing his arms over his chest. "I was about to come and get you, but now that you're here... Cid said he has something for you. Go to the Accessory shop and you'll find him there." he instructed.

Hikari nodded. "Well, welcome to the neighborhood then, Mr. Gepetto, Pinocchio. Talk to you guys later!" she shouted, waving her hand goodbye as she ran down the set of stairs to reach the Accessory shop.

"Bye Hikari! See you later!" Pinocchio waved his hand goodbye.

The brunette ran down the stairs to reach Cid's shop, but out of nowhere, a duck and a dog suddenly came out of a corner.

"Look out!" Hikari wasn't fast enough to stop.

"WAK!"

"A-HYUK!"

The three was pilled on top of each other after the impact. Hikari was on top of them as they both laid on the stoned floor. The brunette pushed herself off them and rubbed her head. Her head was pounding after she headbutted the giant walking dog.

"Why I outta..." The duck's whole body shook in anger as he stood back up. He jumped up and down, waving his fist threateningly at Hikari. "Watch where you're going, will 'ya?!" he quacked angrily.

"Me?! You came out of nowhere!" Hikari pointed her finger at him, equally angry as him.

"You're the one who came speeding towards us!" The duck shouted.

The dog laughed nervously. "Uh... Maybe we should all calm down." he said, trying to calm his friend down. "I'm sure Sora didn't mean to hit us, Donald." he continued.

Hikari blinked. "Sora?"

"Yeah?"

The brunette glanced up to look at the person who just came. Her eyes widened when she laid eyes on him. The boy's eyes were also wide when they meet hers. The boy walked closer to Hikari, their eyes never breaking contact. Both Donald and Goofy could only glanced back and forth between the two brunettes.

Sora could only stare, parting his lips a little when he found his voice.

"Hikari?"


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: I'm actually working on chapter two of Little Adventures and have at least 6 pages already sketched! :D

Since there will be a sequel to New Beginnings, I wanna ask you guys something. Do you think I should join Chain of Memories and Days together? Or should I separate them? I've been thinking a lot and can't seem to make a decision...

Special thanks to AJPJwealluvJJ, Plexi Pink, joeykun938, Neo-Gojira 54, Marzi kami for adding this story to their favs!

Special thanks to joeykun938 and Marzi kami for adding this story to their alerts!

Guest: Oh my haha you really pay attention to the small details ^_^ I'm glad that you figure out a few clues I put here and there. Well, there are more clues in the stories that I'm planing to put hehe

Erikfinnvladimir: I hoped so too haha. Salam kenal hehe makasih ya

Guest: it's good to be back haha! And yes, I'm having fun with writing that part, wink wink xD

AllSpark Princess: Me too ^^ here's the next chapter!

DisneyFreak-Lover: uh-huh ^^

KH (c) Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

* * *

Chapter 13: together

"Gawrsh... I think you just met your doppelganger, Sora." Goofy said as he kept on glancing back and forth between the two brunettes. He was the first one to talk between little group as both Donald and the two brunettes were too shocked to even blink. "You two look so much alike. Almost like siblings, a-hyuck!" he giggled behind his hands.

Donald finally snapped out of it. "What do you think, you big palooka!" he stomped his foot and glared at his friend for being so oblivious to the fact that the two brunettes are related. He directed his hand to Hikari and then to Sora. "They're obviously related!" he huffed out.

Sora shook his head, turning his attention from Donald to his sister. "Are you... really Hikari?" he asked, taking a step forward.

"No duh, Genius!" Hikari said sarcastically, crossing her arms with a frown on her lips. Her frown disappeared and her expression turned to a suspicious look. "And... You're really Sora, right?" she asked back.

Hikari raised her hands and pinched Sora's cheeks, stretching them apart. She received a loud 'AW!' from the brunet and not a second later, her nose was pinched and pulled. She also shout a loud 'AW!' in return. The two brunettes began to stretch each other's face, pinching and jabbing the opposite person until they both had enough and pulled away.

"Argh aw... It really is you!" Hikari exclaimed as she pointed her finger, her other hand trying to rub away the throbbing pain on her nose.

"No duh, Genius!" Sora mimicked the comeback, rubbing his red cheeks from being over-pinched.

Hikari placed her hands on her hips, a frown on her lips. "Where have you been all this time anyway? I've been looking-AW!" she shouted in surprise as she cradled her throbbing head. Sora had just bonked her on her head with his knuckles. She didn't do anything wrong other than bump into his duck friend! "What was that for?!" she glared at her brother.

Sora furrowed his eyebrows. "Why didn't you wait for me?! I also went to the world that you visited and they all say the same thing! Were you really in a hurry or something?!" he crossed his arms over his chest, glaring at his sister.

Hikari gave him an offended look. "Well, excuse me for not knowing! If I'd known that you were going to visit the same world, I would've waited!" she huffed, placing her hands on her hips. "But noooo, how could I ever know?" she continued sarcastically.

"Uh... Guys?" Donald tried to calm the two brunettes from fighting verbally with each other. He expected hugging and crying, but he didn't expect glaring and blaming each other. He shrunk back along with Goofy when the two brunettes turned to glare at them both to stop butting into their bickering.

"It wasn't my fault that-!" Hikari stopped when Sora threw himself to her so suddenly after their fight. "Whoa! Sora!" she stumbled back, but quickly found her balance to prevent them both from falling to the cold stoned street.

Sora wrapped his arms around his sister tightly, burying his face on her shoulder. A mix of feelings overwhelmed him as he kept his arms around his younger sister. He was angry that she didn't wait for him. He was worried sick that his sister might not survived the Darkness. He was overjoyed that he finally found one of the person he has been looking for all this time. But most of all, he was relieved that his sister is okay.

"You're okay... You're okay..." were the only words that came out as he sobbed into her jacket.

' _It's so... warm... This feeling...'_ Hikari closed her eyes tightly as tears also spilled out from her eyes. She returned his embrace, moving her arms to his back. She patted his back gently as she rested her chin on his trembling shoulder. She never realized that she would miss his hugs. It only proves that she missed him dearly even though it only had been a couple of weeks.

"I missed you Sora..." Hikari said, smiling into his shoulder. The bickering earlier was completely forgotten. "Sibling hug?" she laughed.

Sora laughed too. "Sibling hug." he said and they patted each other's back before pulling away.

Donald and Goofy smiled at the two siblings. It was heartwarming to see the two finally being reunited. They were bickering a minute ago and now they were having their sibling hug. Definitely the most weirdest sibling reunion and yet the most heartwarming they had seen.

Sora slung his arm around Hikari's shoulder, pulling her down a little. "Guys! I would like you to meet my sister, Hikari!" he turned to his two friends and directed his hand to his sister. "Hikari, meet my friends! Donald, Goofy and Jiminy! He's the cricket." he pointed to the well-dressed cricket on Donald's shoulder.

"Pleased to finally meet 'cha!" Goofy laughed as he shook hands with the brunette. "Yeah, Sora won't stop being all gloomy when he couldn't find you." Donald added as he turned to look at the boy.

Sora's cheeks flushed bright red in embarrassment. "Hey! Don't say that!" he complained, puffing his cheeks out childishly. He turned to face his sister, a pout on his lips. "Don't listen to Donald, Hikari. He's just saying things." he said.

Hikari grinned cheekily. "Oh really." she teased, poking Sora's puffed out cheek. "Sora and gloomy... That's really rare." she grinned.

"Oh and like you aren't?" A new voice startled the group. It was Yuffie with Leon and Cid behind her. "You wouldn't stop talking about how worried you are about Sora either! I can even mimic one of your sentence. _Oh Sora! I hope you're okay! I just can't sleep knowing that I couldn't find you!_ " the black-haired ninja mimicked dramatically.

Hikari's cheeks flushed bright red, matching Sora's earlier blush. "HEY! I don't talk like that! And I didn't say that either!" she pointed her finger accusingly at Yuffie, glaring at her. "You must be talking about a different Hikari!" she continued.

"Hikari and worried in the same sentence... Really rare." It was Sora's turn to tease. He put his sister in a headlock, ruffling her hair. "I missed you too, sis." he grinned down at her.

Hikari grinned. She missed him too.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Sora stared at the Thalassa Charm in his hands.

"So... Kairi is..."

Hikari looked down at the Thalassa Charm in Sora's hands, a frown on her lips. She told him about everything that happened between her and Riku, and how she found Kairi and then lost her to her own friend. She felt guilty that she couldn't protect Kairi when she promised to always be by her side when she wakes up. She knew how much Kairi meant to Sora and she really didn't want to disappoint her brother that she couldn't protect the most precious person to him.

"Sorry Sora..." Hikari apologized, her eyes not daring to meet her brother's worried ones. "I... wasn't strong enough to protect her. I'm sorry." she apologized again.

Sora smiled. "It's not your fault." he took his sister's hand into his own and placed the Thalassa Charm into her hand, making her look at the good luck charm to look him in the eyes. His eyes seemed to show determination. "We'll get her back... And Riku too... We'll be together again soon. I promise. Just like when we were back in the islands." he promised, giving Hikari's hand a reassuring squeeze.

' _That's what Riku said too...'_ Hikari thought, staring into her brother's eyes. She stared down at the Thalassa Charm in her hands before closing her fingers to get a proper hold of the good luck charm.

"Maleficent planned to use the seven Princesses of Hearts, seven maidens with pure hearts, to open the final door. We know that she has at least three princesses with her." Leon said, glancing over to Hikari. From the story she told, she met and was certain that Jasmine and Snow White were one of the seven Princesses. And of course, from Fairy Godmother, Cinderella is one of the Princesses too. But to the other four remaining princesses, they have no clue. "And she tried using you and Riku to gather the princesses for her." he added.

Sora's grasp around Hikari's hand tightened a little. "So you want us to find out who the other four is?" he asked.

Leon shook his head. "Sort of... It could be anyone. Your main task is still locking other worlds' keyhole. Let's say that it's another side job for you to do." he said, crossing his arms over his chest.

Sora nodded his head in understanding.

"So what now?" Hikari asked, glancing up to look at the people around them.

Donald crossed his arms. "Well, it's obvious that we're going to go around traveling the worlds again."

"We?" Hikari echoed, feeling a little bummed that she couldn't come along with their adventure.

Goofy nodded his head. "Well, yeah! There's uh... Donald, Jiminy, Sora, me and you." he counted, pointing to each of the person he called. The last person he pointed his finger at was Hikari, surprising the girl.

Sora's and Hikari's blue eyes widened. "Me too?" Hikari asked, pointing to herself. "Did you guys really mean it? Can Hikari come along too?" Sora added, a hopeful look across his face.

Both Donald and Goofy nodded. "We know how much this means to you, so yeah." the royal magician said, a smile on his beak.

"The more the merrier!" Goofy laughed.

Sora and Hikari glanced at each other, bright smiles across their faces. They just found each other and neither of them are going to leave one behind anytime soon.

"But there's only one rule if you want to ride this ship." Donald raised his finger, raising his beak up.

Hikari blinked. "And that is?" she tilted her head confusedly.

Sora, Donald and Goofy glanced at each other, nodding. "You gotta think about happy things! No sad thoughts and frowns, just smiles!" Sora grinned as the trio made funny faces, pulling on their faces to make the youngest smile.

"Pfffttt!" Hikari's hand shot up to her mouth as she burst out laughing. The people in the room also giggled at the trio's funny faces.

"That's it!" Sora grinned.

Aerith giggled. "Alright, alright, now that Hikari knows the rule, it's time for you guys to get going." she said, ushering the group out of the hotel room.

The two brunettes nodded. "We'll see you guys later!"

Hikari smiled as she watched her brother's back, Donald and Goofy by his side. The feeling to be with her brother again is just so overwhelming, she can't stop smiling to herself. Her smile suddenly dropped and a frown replaced her smile. She glanced down to the Thalassa Charm, her thoughts going back to the redhead and her silver-haired friend.

' _If only... Kairi and Riku are with us like this...'_

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari gawked when she was inside the Gummi ship. It looked way bigger in the inside than it was in the outside. There were four chairs in the ship. She took a seat right beside Sora and she still can't stop gawking. This was her first time inside a spaceship!

"I can tell that this is your first time in a ship, kid!"

The brunette blinked. "Huh?" she glanced around, looking around the cock pit. She didn't know anyone who has a voice that squeaky, well maybe Sora when he was singing, but he wasn't singing now. Her blue eyes looked over to Donald and then to Goofy and finally to Sora, who simply smiled and pointed to the armrest of the chair. She finally glanced down and her eyes widened when she saw two squirrels, standing on the armrest. "What the-?"

"I can tell that this is your first time looking at talking chipmunks too!" the one with the red nose giggled.

"Well... I've met Donald and Goofy and other talking animals so... Yeah." Hikari trailed off, scratching the back of her neck sheepishly.

"They're Chip and Dale. Those two are the mechanics responsible for the maintenance of the ship." Donald explained from the front seat.

Hikari's mouth was shaped to an 'O' as she looked down at the two chipmunks. "Well, nice to meet you two. I'm Hikari." she gave them her finger to shake.

Chip and Dale shook her finger and they both motioned for her to come closer. "So we heard that you have the Star Shard." Chip began. "You think we can take a peek?" Dale continued.

The brunette shrugged and reached her hand out to take out the Star Shard from her pouch. She showed it to the two chipmunks and they both gawked at the shard. "Hey, isn't this the King's Star Shard?" Chip asked, placing his tiny hands on the star shaped shard.

At the mention of King, Donald and Goofy glanced back. "Gawrsh! It really is the King's Star Shard!" Goofy exclaimed.

Sora stood from his seat, "Do you know where the King is, Hikari?"

Hikari shook her head. "No clue... Merlin gave it to me so I can return it to the King." she explained.

Donald and Goofy went back to their seats. "Well, at least we have the same goal too." Donald said as he drove the ship in the Lanes in Between.

"Hikari, look up." Sora pointed to the dome of the ship. Hikari did as told and her eyes widened at the sight of the stars gleaming down at them. The sky was wider than the one at Destiny Islands. She could see stars everywhere, 360 degrees. "Kind of hard to believe that those stars are actually worlds, huh?" he asked as he also stared.

"Yeah..." Hikari nodded her head in agreement. "Do you think we'll be able to memorize each and every world?" she asked, glancing over to her brother.

Sora looked over to his sister and gave a shrug. "Maybe... But I hope there's a device that can help us remember... Memorizing those many worlds? I can't even memorize two chapters of biology!" he groaned, slumping in his seat. He heard Hikari laughed at him and he sat back up, giving his sister a teasing look. "Oh yeah? Well I know that you fell asleep after reading two pages of History too. Don't think that Tidus didn't rant you out." he grinned.

"True... But Tidus is gonna get a serious butt whooping once we go home!" Hikari smacked her hand with her fist, cracking her knuckles. She heard Sora sniggered. She smiled and glanced back up to the sky, staring at the stars. _'One of those stars... One day, I'll find you... Promise.'_ she took a deep breath and let it out softy.

"We're here!" Donald's voice broke her thoughts.

Hikari leaned to the side to look at the world and she made a face. "What kind of world is it?" she asked.

"Halloween themed, I guess." Sora answered.

"No duh."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Sora glanced around. It really is a Halloween themed world. His surrounding were dark and spooky, just like what Halloween should be. It by far the most realistic Halloween he has ever seen. Back at Destiny Islands, it was just pumpkins here and there and fake spiderwebs too. The world really did go all out on the theme. He glanced down and jumped a bit when his clothes changed to fit the world.

"Wow! My clothes changed!" Sora said, stating the obvious. He looked down at himself and glanced over his shoulder. He was dressed as some sort of vampire. He touched his mouth, feeling two fangs and he grinned. Yup. Definitely a vampire. He glanced over to Donald and Goofy and gave a whistle. "You guys look scary! Donald the Mummy and Goofy the Frankenstein." he grinned, showing his fangs.

"Yeah, I hope there's no spooky ghost around here." Goofy said, glancing around.

Donald turned to face Goofy. "Of course there might be! It's a Halloween themed world!"

Sora looked around. "Hey... Where's Hikari?" he asked in concern. "Don't tell me that she somehow got lost the minute we land or something..." he slumped his shoulders.

"Oh ha ha... So glad you trust me so much." Said brunette replied sarcastically as she appeared behind the trio. Sora, Donald and Goofy jumped when they heard her. The three friends glanced around and tried to hold in their laughter. Finally they can't hold it anymore and burst out laughing as Hikari rolled her eyes and crossed her arms in annoyance. "Hardy har har... So funny." she glared.

Sora placed his hands on his stomach. "Can't help it! It fits you!" he continued laughing. Apparently, Hikari was dressed as a 'scary' scarecrow. If you count patched clothes and one eye being covered by the worn out straw hat scary... Then yes, she is a scary scarecrow. "This is just like that Oz play when you were in kindergarten!"

"Would you let it go already?" Hikari puffed out her cheeks childishly. She was chosen to be the scarecrow because of how she acted without thinking back then. And apparently the Halloween themed world seemed to think so too. "I acted without thinking, so what? That doesn't mean that I can't be a cool werewolf or something... I mean, a witch or a zombie is better than this. It's super itchy!" she gestured to her costume.

"Well, you better live with it." Sora grinned.

"I hate this place..." Hikari sighed as she crossed her hands behind her head.

Sora laughed as he walked pass his sister, dragging her along to the town square. It was empty, foggy and most of all spooky. The four friends glanced around, trying to find any sight of Heartless.

"Hey-!" Hikari's eyes widened when something went through her. She instantly froze, staring at the floating sheet that just went _through_ her. Her blue eyes followed the white sheet, trying to make sure it was real and not an illusion. Her eye twitched when she saw the floating sheet went through a wall. A _wall_. "Holy-!" She tried to scream out, but Sora beat her to it.

"No cursing!" Sora covered her mouth as she shrieked into his hand. He finally moved his hand away when Hikari stopped shrieking. "Don't... tell me that you're still scared of ghosts..." he stared at his sister in disbelief.

Hikari glared. "So what?! That thing just went through me! _Through_ me! How would you feel when something just went through you!" she shot back, shivering. She really could never forget the feeling of a ghost just passing through her.

Sora sighed, giving a look. "Well... I'll let you know when one does went through me, 'okay?" he joked.

"I hate this world..." Hikari mumbled. "I hate it..."

Donald sighed, shaking his head. "Well, we better look around."

"Please welcome the one and only Pumpkin King, Jack Skellington!"


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: I have updated Little Adventures :D I hope you enjoy the first page of the second chapter of Little Adventures.

What do you guys think if I join CoM and Days together?

BlueXRedKnight: Thank you ^^

DisneyFreak-Lover: haha yeah

Guest: Wow! You're twins? That's so cool! And yes, Chip and Dale are very cute! And yeah, I think Com and Days will work together. And awwww thank you so much!

Lulu9814: Thanks!

Thank you L'ceil and ShadowWolf223 for adding this story to their favs!

Thank you Amarxlen, Mikari Satsuke, ShadowWolf223, datchocobun for adding this story to their alerts!

Kingdom Hearts (C) Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

* * *

Chapter 14  
scare

"He's so tall!" Hikari exclaimed when she first saw the Pumpkin King rise. Her blue eyes was locked on the tall skinny figure. His costume was awesome! Even though he was dressed in a simple black suit with white stripes, his skeleton costume was the best she had seen so far. A little too realistic, if she could say.

"Ssssttt! He might heard you!" Donald pressed his finger to his beak, shushing the brunette from talking so loudly. The magician glanced back to the Pumpkin King, only to find that the King was making his way towards them. He turned back to Hikari, placing his hands on his hips as he tapped his foot on the ground. Hikari gave him a sheepish look and mouthed a 'sorry' to him when the skeleton man was near them. "Sorry, she didn't mean to offend you." the duck apologized, turning to look up at the man.

The Pumpkin King laughed. "Newcomers! Welcome! Welcome!" he said in delight, shaking Sora's hand before moving to Donald, Goofy and lastly Hikari. "I'm Jack Skellington! And welcome to Halloween Town!" he grinned widely, leaning down to reach the brunette's eyes level.

The brunette grinned back. "Nice to meet you! My name's Hika-!" she stopped when the hand she was shaking suddenly snapped off from the man's forearm. Her eyes kept on staring at the hand. She didn't even scream for she lost her voice to do so.

"This is the fifth time today! Looks like I need to glue my hand down, huh?" Jack laughed as he stood up to his full height, raising his arm to inspect the missing hand. He reached down and took his hand back from Hikari, who still had a smile stuck on her face. "Well, it was nice meeting you all! Stay until after the show alright? I'm making these guys do a dance show!" he said, referring to the ghost Heartless that showed up behind him.

Sora's jaw dropped. "Wow! Really?! Then we'll be sure to stay for the show then!" he says excitedly as he placed his hands on his sister's shoulders.

"Excellent!" Jack smiled before he turned around to walk away.

Sora, Donald and Goofy stared as Jack left to enter a spooky house. The three kept on staring until the door to the house was closed.

"We better follow him." Donald said and both Sora and Goofy nodded.

"Hey, Hikari, let's-!" The brunet turned to his sister and his hand quickly shot up to cover her sister's mouth, her high pitched shrieking muffled by his gloved hand. After a minute or two, he finally released his hand, letting his sister catch her breath from a minute of nonstop shrieking. "Geez! Are you done? I never knew you were such a scardy cat!" he placed his hands on his hips, giving Hikari a teasing grin.

Hikari turned to glare at her brother. "His hand just fell off and it can still move!" she reasoned. Everyone in their right might would do the same as her, right? Her brother only gave her a look as he crossed his arms. It was easy for him since he wasn't scared of ghosts and spooky stuff, but for her it was tough. She liked Halloween and stuff, but this was a little too much for her to take in at the moment. "I hate this place... I hate it." she said.

Sora sighed, shaking his head. "Well... If you're that scared then maybe you can wait with Chip and Dale." he suggested. "At least you won't meet anymore spooky ghosts there, right?"

Hikari puffed her cheeks out, frowning. "No way! This is our first adventure together ever since we were separated! I ain't gonna back off just because of some gh-ghost!" she stuttered a little, but quickly recovered to give Sora her best pout.

Sora smiled. "Yeah... You're right..." he grinned, crossing his hands behind his head. Now that he thought about it, this is actually the first world he had traveled with someone he knew from the islands and with his sister at that too.

Goofy giggled behind his hands. "A-hyuck! Let's get going then."

Sora, Hikari, Donald and Goofy went to the house Jack went. All the time, Hikari kept on avoiding the ghost Heartless that were floating all around the town square. It was weird that the Heartless weren't attacking them like rabid wolves, but she was still cautious of them when Sora had summoned away his keyblade. The boy was actually enjoying the fact that the Heartless weren't attacking them for once.

Sora opened the door and peeked inside the house. He pushed the door all the way and let himself in, Donald, Hikari and Goofy walking right behind him. They kept on walking until they reached a lab. His blue eyes trailed from the spooky interior to the people inside the lab. There were Jack, a crazy looking scientist and a Heartless laid on the metal bed. He walked deeper into the room as the scientist and Jack were too deep in their conversation to notice anyone entering the lab.

"I still don't understand why it's not working!" The scientist slammed his skinny hands on the armrest of his mechanical wheelchair. "I put everything into it! Dirt, water, everything!" he complained, moving his wheelchair to face the Heartless.

Jack hummed, stroking his chin. "Ah! I got it! Maybe we're missing a heart!" he snapped his fingers, his long legs making two strides before reaching the professor's side. He leaned down, placing his hands on his knees. "Doctor, do you think we can add a heart to that device?" he asked.

"A heart you say? Yes! Yes! That's what missing!" the scientist went around the lab, taking something out. He placed a chest box on the metal bed beside the Heartless. He tried to pry open the chest but failed when he was missing a key. "Ugh! I can't seem to open this chest!" he huffed out.

Sora took a step forward. "I can help you with it." he suddenly said, summoning his keyblade. Both the scientist and Jack turned around to face him, surprised that the boy had entered without them noticing. He also received a surprised look from his friends. Hikari tapped her shoulder and wrapped her right arm around Sora and her left arm around Goofy. "What's this? A group huddle?" the boy asked, his eyes glancing at his friends confusedly.

"Do you really think it's a good idea to help them, Sora?" Goofy asked, his eyes staring at the boy.

Sora gave a shrug. "They needed help. If we do this then we don't have to fight the Heartless anymore, right?" he asked, his eyes averting from his sister and then to Donald and Goofy. Hikari, Donald and Goofy glanced at each other. He does have a point. If they helped this crazy scientist and succeed, they won't have to fight the Heartless anymore and all they have to worry is just fighting Maleficent. "And besides, I want to see them dance, don't you?" he grinned.

Hikari pondered for a bit. "Well... I do want to see them dance too. I wanna know if they can do a robot!" she said excitedly, grinning at her brother.

Donald gave a sigh of defeat. "Well, I guess it can't hurt to try."

The group broke off and Sora walked closer to the metal bed. "Do you really mean it? Do you really want to help us make a heart?" Jack asked, trying to confirm.

The brunet nodded his head. "Of course!" he replied and he raised his keyblade. He tapped on the chest twice before it suddenly opened.

Jack clapped his hands. "Marvelous! That was truly marvelous! Thank you so much..." he trailed off as he stared at Sora. He rubbed his chin again as he tried to remember the boy's name. "I can't seem to remember your name except Hika..." he said.

Sora laughed. "I'm Sora. That's Donald and Goofy." he introduced cheerfully.

"And I'm Hikari, not Hika." Hikari corrected, walking to stand beside her brother.

Jack smiled. "It's nice to know your names! This is Doctor Finkelstien. He's quite a genius!" he directed his hand to the scientist sitting on the wheelchair. Hikari snorted after hearing the doctor's name, but both Sora and Donald stopped her from making a joke about the doctor's name. Sora jabbed his sister's ribs with his elbow as Donald lightly slapped her arm. She responded with an offended look that they don't trust her to say something. Jack only tilted his head at the trio's action before continuing to speak. "But now, let's get to making a heart. Shall we, doctor?" he turned his head to the doctor.

Doctor Finkelstein nodded his head and laid out the ingredients to make a heart on the metal bed. "Pulse. Emotions. Fear. Hope and Despair... Mix them all together and we have heart!" he said, pulled down a lever to activate the machine.

The whole room glowed bright and making everyone except Jack and Doctor Finkelstein close their eyes due to the brightness. The light died down a few seconds later. Sora and Hikari were on the edge of their feet, eager to see if it really works. The Heartless' claws twitched a little and it suddenly sat up, surprising the brunettes. Hikari jumped on Sora's back in surprise as Sora shrieked.

"Blast! It didn't work!" Doctor Finkelstein cursed, moving his wheelchair to the giant book near the metal bed. He ignored the fact that the vampire and the scarecrow in the room seemed to freak out when the Heartless sat up and went back to lay on the the metal bed. The two brunette's face went red as Hikari got off her brother, completely embarrassed that they got scared over a little jump-scare. "Maybe... Maybe we're missing an ingredient!" he read over the text and he finally noticed what was missing. "Memories! We're missing memories!" he said, turning around the wheelchair to face everyone.

Hikari cleared her throat, "Ehem... Is that really what makes a heart? Memories too?" she asked, trying to read over the text on the large book.

Doctor Finkelstein nodded. "Yes! Yes! We need memories." he glanced around as if he was looking for someone. Hikari took a few steps back away from the doctor. There was absolutely no way she was going to give her memories to this lunatic. Her memories are too precious to be used to see a Heartless dance. "Good heavens girl! I'm not revering to you!" he said to the brunette who sighed in relief. "Sally! Sally! Good for nothing girl! I don't even know why I bother to create her!" he huffed.

"Who's Sally?" Sora asked, tilting his head slightly to the side.

"Sally is my assistant. She's the one who has the memories we need to make a heart." Doctor Finkelstein answered.

Jack placed his hand on Doctor Finkelstein's wheelchair, "Don't worry, doctor! We'll find Sally and get those memories for you." he reassured, giving a wide smile.

Doctor Finkelstein nodded. "Yes, yes, and get me some surprise while you're at it. The Mayor should have it." he instructed and Jack only nodded.

"Of course!" Jack replied before turning to face the group of four. "Would you like to help me to collect the items?" he asked.

Sora nodded his head. "Yeah, of course!"

Sora followed Jack out of the lab and his eyes widened when the ghost Heartless in town became active. He summoned his keyblade and jumped down the set of stairs, taking out one of the Heartless as he landed on the ground. He glanced around the town square, seeing the Heartless were no longer sitting still, but instead they were floating around and attacking everyone.

"What happened?!" Jack placed his hands on his head, surprised to find out the Heartless weren't so much docile anymore. "Why aren't they following my orders anymore?" he asked in disappointment.

"Maybe it has something to do with what happened in the lab." Sora answered as he slashed another Heartless that was getting too close for comfort.

Jack look surprised when Sora killed one of his dancers.

"Don't worry, Jack. There's plenty for you to choose even if we wiped them out from the town square." Hikari tried to cheer the Pumpkin King up. She turned to face the skeleton man, giving him a smile. She shivered when something went through her again. She fell to her knees, complaining again. She glanced up only to find that it was that same ghost that went through her earlier. She glared at the ghost, completely forgetting that there were Heartless everywhere. "It's you!" she shouted, pointing her finger accusingly at the ghost dog.

Jack glanced over to Hikari. "You've met Zero?" he asked as the ghost dog floated to her, circling her who in return pursed her lips to contain a scream from coming out. "Zero knows where Sally is! Follow him!" he exclaimed, informing Sora, Donald and Goofy to follow the dog.

Zero passed through Hikari once more.

"Argh! Come on!" Hikari shouted in complaint. She rubbed her arms, trying to suppressed the odd feelings, but failed miserably. She doesn't know if Zero was doing it on purpose or not, but she is definitely never going to get used to it. She glanced up and found that everyone was already halfway across the town square to the graveyard. She quickly ran to catch up with them. There is no way that she's staying alone in this town. "Hey! Wait up!" she panted as she finally reached her brother.

Sora glanced over to his sister, giving her a look. He was about to say something when a swarm of Heartless appeared, circling them. The two stood shoulder to shoulder as they raised their weapon against the Heartless separating them from Donald, Goofy and Jack. The two nodded at each other before they lunged forward, their weapons ready. Hikari swung her rod at the Heartless, casting a fire spell. She jumped away when a Heartless lunged at her, its claws ready. She dodged rolled to a save distance and raised her rod to use as a defense from the Heartless' claws. The Heartless' claws clashed with her staff.

Hikari gritted her teeth when the Heartless kept on trying to corner her. It was obvious that she was losing. She suddenly felt the whole weight being lifted as the Heartless began to disappear. She raised her head up and smiled at the sight of her brother. Sora smiled in return as he offered his hand. His sister gladly took his hand as he pulled her up. The two nodded at each other before taking out the Heartless together.

"Freeze!" Hikari shouted, pointing her rod at the Heartless. A burst of ice shot out from her rod, hitting a few Heartless back. Sora swung his keyblade, taking the Heartless out one by one. Hikari hit the Heartless with her rod, using it like a sword. She ducked down when a Heartless tried to claw her out. Sora sidestepped to protect his sister, he blocked the Heartless' claws as Hikari dodged rolled to stand behind the Heartless. She swung her rod, hitting the Heartless away from Sora. "Firaga!" she casted.

"Nice one!" Sora patted Hikari's shoulder before he threw his keyblade, letting it spin around the place like a boomerang, taking out the Heartless as it went back to the wielder's hand.

"You too!" Hikari raised her left hand, giving Sora a high five.

"That was some nice teamwork!" Goofy complimented, smiling at the two brunettes.

"Thanks!" Both Sora and Hikari said in unison, grinning.

"I can see why Merlin said that you're good." Donald crossed his arms, giving Hikari a smile.

Hikari gave him a bashful look, "Aw shuck!"

The two brunettes took a step back when Zero went to float between them to the graveyard. They quickly went over to the tombstone when they heard a shout coming from it. A girl rose up from behind the tombstone, holding forget-me-nots. She turned to look at them confusedly before turning to face Jack.

"Is there something you need, Jack?" The girl asked, tilting her head.

Jack nodded. "We need your memories to make a heart, Sally."

"My memories?" Sally echoed before glancing down to the flowers in her hands. "You mean these?" she asked.

"Yes! That's it! Thank you Sally!" Jack exclaimed as he took the flowers from Sally's hands. "C'mon guys, let's go and get surprise from the Mayor." he said as he turned to walked away.

Hikari glanced over to Sally before she glanced over to Sora, who smiled and nodded his head. "You guys go on ahead, I'll stick around with Sally." she said.

Goofy tilted his head. "Are you sure? I thought you wanna have an adventure together with your brother?" he asked confusedly. Donald placed his hands on his hips as he gave Goofy a look. The Royal Knight finally caught on the look Donald was giving and his mouth turned to an 'O' shape.

The brunette gave him a sheepish grin. "After all that fighting, I think I need a fifteen minute break." she answered, scratching the back of her neck.

Sora placed his hand on Hikari's shoulder. "Okay, if you need anything we'll be at the lab." he said before leaving his sister behind.

Hikari nodded and waved her hand goodbye as she watched Sora, Donald, Goofy and Jack left the graveyard.

"Why didn't you go with your brother?" Sally asked curiously.

Hikari turned around. "Well, I thought maybe that you need some company. You know... Girl to girl company?" she flashed the doll a grin, motioning her finger between them to prove her point. "After all we are the same haha..." She laughed nervously as she pointed to herself.

Sally smiled a little when she noticed that Hikari is a scarecrow. "I guess we are." she nodded her head.

Hikari grinned. "Oh! I'm Hikari! Nice to met 'cha!" she offered her hand for Sally to shake.

"You already know my name." Sally said as she shook Hikari's hand. She looked at Hikari before she looked down to the ground. She folded her hands in front of her chest before speaking. "What... Do you think of Jack's idea? About making the Heartless dance?" she asked suddenly, lifting her chin up to meet with Hikari's visible blue eye.

The brunette blinked at the sudden topic. "Well... Um... I think it's a cool idea... I mean I want to see them dance, but it'll be really cool if we don't have to fight them anymore too." she answered honestly, scratching the back of her neck as she placed a hand on her hip. It would be kind of cool to control the Heartless and used it against Maleficent and her little group. That way, they would be able to save Kairi, Riku and return Hollow Bastion to the world it was all together. "Ummm... What do you think?" she asked back.

Sally glanced down. "I don't think it's such a good idea... Not about making them dance... But about having the Heartless running so freely around town."

Hikari thought back and nodded her head in agreement. The Heartless did suddenly went out of control when they went out of the doctor's lab. "Well... You have a point there..." she crossed her arms, sighing.

"I have a bad feeling about it..." Sally said, barely inaudible, but due to the silence atmosphere, the brunette could hear her perfectly.

"Sally-!" Hikari's eyes widened when she felt someone pushed her from behind with full force. She fell forward, face first to the ground. She could heard Sally gasp in surprise as she landed on the ground with a thud. The brunette grunted when she pushed herself up, propping herself up with her elbows. "That hurts!" she shouted, rubbing her face.

"Haha! Scardy cat! Scardy cat!" a childish voice rang in her ears.

Hikari glanced up and found three children in costumes. A witch, a red devil and a skeleton. A visible vein popped on her forehead as she glared at the three children. "What was that for?! Why did you push me!" she demanded.

The witch stick her tongue out at her. "Bweeek! We just thought it would be funny! And it was!" she laughed along with the other two.

"Yeah since you're a scarecrow with no brain and all!" The red devil added and the kids burst out in full laughter.

Hikari growled in reply, her eye twitching.

Sally helped the scarecrow up and frowned at the three children. "Lock, Shock, Barrel, you three know that isn't a very nice thing to do to newcomers. Apologize to Hikari right now." she said, placing her hands on her hips.

"No way!" Barrel shouted, making a face at Hikari.

"Why you! Get lost!" Hikari shouted, shaking her fist at them.

Shock giggled. "Are you sure? Don't you want this back?" she asked as she showed the item she had been hiding behind her back for Hikari to see.

The brunette's eye widened when she saw the item Shock was holding. Her hand quickly went over to her pouches that were replaced as bags of rags to fit the world. She dug her hand inside of the the pouches before turning her head to glare at the three children.

"Give that back! It doesn't belong to you!" Hikari yelled, her eyebrows furrowed down.

"Lock, Shock, Barrel, give it back to Hikari." Sally said, walking forward to kneel in front of the three kids.

Shock held the item closer, away from Sally's reach. "No way! It belongs to me now!" she said before running away with Lock and Barrel, another item in Lock's hands.

Hikari gritted her teeth, attempting to chase after the three children, but Sally stopped her.

"I'm sorry for their behavior... They're really mischievous." Sally said, giving Hikari an apologetic look.

The brunette took a deep breath. "It's not your fault, but I'm gonna teach those brats a lesson for taking things that don't belong to them!" she raised her fist and smacked it against her palm, making her point. She summoned her rod into her and walked closer to Sally, staring at the path Lock, Shock and Barrel took. "That... charm those brats took... It wasn't just any good luck charm." she said, staring at her hand.

Sally stared at Hikari. "It must be really important to you."

"It is... Which is why I'm gonna get it back no matter what." Hikari closed her fingers and then looked up, a determined look across her face as she stared at the dark and spooky path. She turned to look at Sally, giving her a small smile. "I'm sorry about this Sally. Maybe we can talk some other time?" she said.

Sally shook her head. "It's no problem. It was nice talking to you, even thought for just a short time." she smiled in return. "I'll inform your brother about this."

"Thanks." Hikari nodded her head.

"Try not to punish them too hard."

"No promises."


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: a new chapter!

Oh and I would like to remind you guys to read the prequel of this fic, Little Adventures. For those of you who don't know or where to read Little Adventures, it's the prequel manga version that I drew and posted at my DA account. It tells the story of Hikari before New Beginnings, which means the timeline is before KH 1 and during BBS. I recommend you guys read it in order to understand this fic further and the future fics I'm planning to write too. There are many elements that will be referred to Little Adventures at the next story which will be posted after New Beginnings is finished.

Special thanks to SuperSonicBros123 and IncorruptusUser for adding this story to their favs!

Guest: Me too! They were really annoying to beat!

Lulu9814: Thank you! And yes, they better!

Kingdom Hearts (C) Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

Hikari (C) me

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Chapter 15

Sora helped Doctor Finkelstein up to his wheelchair. He was surprised when those three little kids jumped out of nowhere, tripped the man and then ran off with the artificial heart. "What was that all about?" he asked, glancing over to Jack with a frown.

Jack turned to look at Sora. "They're Lock, Shock and Barrel... The best trickster in town!" he answered.

Doctor Finkelstein slammed his hand on the armrest of his wheelchair, gritting his teeth. "Those three little brats stole my invention! You have to get it back!" he turned his wheelchair to face both Sora and Jack.

The brunet nodded his head. "Don't worry, we will!" he said in determination. It was rude enough that those three kids pushed the Doctor out of his wheelchair, but stealing his invention to? Kids or no kids, they need to be taught a lesson! Even when he and Hikari was little, their pranks were never really went that far. They were harmless little pranks and they still respect everyone. "We should go and get Hikari." he said, turning to face Donald and Goofy.

Donald and Goofy nodded.

Jack walked towards the door and just as he pushed the door open, he looked back to the three friends. "Let's go guys-," he paused when he was about to step out. He tilted his head at the sight of the long-haired doll who looked just as surprised as he is. "Sally! Is something wrong?" he asked, taking a step back to let Sally inside.

Sally glanced over to Jack before averting her gaze to Sora. "I'm here to tell you that your sister went after Lock, Shock and Barrel after they stole something from her." she informed, her hands folded in front of her chest.

Sora's visible eye widened at the news. "What?" he asked, taking a few steps closer to Sally. A serious look came across his face at the thought of her sister going alone in a world she doesn't like. He knew that Hikari didn't like how spooky Halloween Town is and she's bound to be injured because of how scared she is of places like this world. "Where did she go?" he frowned.

Sally turned sideways, pointing her finger at the direction of the graveyard. "Beyond the graveyard, she chased them towards Moonlight Hill..." she answered and looked down at the floor in concern. She placed a hand over her chest, her gaze still staring at the floor. "At that direction... I'm guessing they're heading for Oogie Boogie's manor." she lifted her head to look at Sora and the others.

Jack gasped. "Oogie Boogie? I knew it! I should have known that he was the one behind all of this!" he frowned, tapping his fist to his opened palm a few times. He brought a hand up to his chin, stroking it in a thinking manner. "But... Why would he want our heart?" he asked aloud.

Sora furrowed his eyebrows down. "I don't know... But we should get there real quick!" he said, summoning his keyblade. "Hikari might need our help!" he continued.

"What's the matter Zero?" Goofy asked as he watched Zero flew towards the brunet.

Zero circled the brunet before he flew out of the lab, floating straight to the graveyard. Sora, Donald, Goofy and Jack quickly followed the ghost dog, knowing that the ghost dog knew exactly where the three little kids and Hikari are.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Come back here, you little brats!" Hikari shouted as she came to face a tall fence, but all of her words went into deaf ears as the three kids kept on running away. The brunette growled as she gripped on the bars. She watched the three kids ran up to the base of the swirly hill. She squinted her eye to get a better look at what they're doing since only their silhouettes were seen because of how bright the moon is. Her eye widened when the curly hill suddenly uncurled itself. The three pranksters ran up the hill and used it as a bridge to get across the fence. "Hey! Stop!" she shouted as she climbed over the fence separating her from the kids.

Lock, Shock and Barrel turned to look at Hikari, stick their tongue out at her before jumping over the tall fence.

Hikari clicked her tongue as the curly hill curled back to the position before Lock, Shock and Barrel did something to make it uncurl. As she was about to take a step forward, Heartless began to popped out around her, filling the Moonlight Hill with various types of Heartless. She stood in a fighting stance, summoning her rod into hand.

The brunette sidestepped away when a shadow loomed over her. She dodged the attack just in time as the Heartless clawed the place where she once stood. She jumped back, keeping her distance between her attacker and herself. She raised her rod, casting Thunder. Bolts of lightning struck down the Heartless around her. She swung her rod to her right, taking out a shadow Heartless in one swoop.

Her blue eye glanced around her surrounding. There were just too much Heartless for her to handle. If Sora was here then... The brunette mentally slapped herself. Oh yeah. Sora was out collecting the ingredients to make a heart for Doctor Finkelstein. She tried to look for an opening and she saw one right between the ghost Heartless. She sighed before dashing towards the gap between the two Heartless. She ducked her head down as the ghost Heartless tried to claw her head.

"Okay! Now what did those brats do to this rock?" Hikari quickly reached the tombstone where Lock, Shock and Barrel did something to make the hill uncurl itself. She touched the tombstone, her eye scanning over the rock. Her hands touched every corner of the surface, looking for a button or something before the Heartless gets to her. Her eye widened when she felt a Heartless behind her. She threw herself to her right, avoiding the Heartless as it lunged forward, almost knocking the tombstone from the ground. "Yikes! Talk about being too much into the Halloween spirit!" she said, staring at the damage.

Hikari turned her head to look at the curly hill just as it starts to unravel itself. "Thanks for the help!" she flashed the Heartless a grin and a two finger salute as she ran to the top of the hill. She slid down the curly hill's curl and jumped over the tall fence to the other side of the Moonlight Hill, escaping the battle. She landed on the ground with a soft thud and stood up to her full height. "Okay. Where are they now?" her eye scanned the area.

Her blue eye widened when she saw a spooky manor on a high hill. She squinted her eye when she saw something moving. From the platform circling the manor, she could see three figures running up the wooden platform. She frowned and quickly ran towards the direction of the manor. There was no doubt that those little kids were heading to their base.

"Oh my-!" Hikari skidded to a stop when she reached a bridge. She eyed the bridge carefully, staring at the state of it. The bridge leading to the manor was broken beyond repair. Some parts of the bridge were missing and the woods looked as if it would crack under her weight the minute she set foot on it. The rope hanging the bridge were not in good shape either. The ropes holding the bridge looked as if it would snap any second, and the wind wasn't making it any easier. "It's too far to jump to the other side..." she mumbled before looking down to see how far the fall will be if she fell.

The brunette took a deep breath. She didn't want to fall. It looked like a long drop to the ground. She carefully set one foot on the shaky bridge and sighed in relief when it didn't break. She moved her other leg over the broken piece to a more stable piece for her to set her foot on. She grinned in triumph when she was halfway across to the end of the bridge. The grin was quickly wiped from her face when she set her foot on a fragile piece of wood. She heard the loud cracking of wood in the silent night. She quickly jumped over the rest of the bridge to the other end before the wood split into two.

"Ugh... I gotta learn how to fly like Fairy Godmother..." Hikari grunted as she landed flat on her front. She pushed herself up, patting the dirt off her clothes. She glanced over to the bridge before she turned to face the manor. She tilted her head up to look at the tall and dark manor. She took a deep breath. "Okay then..." she exhaled loudly from her mouth before she continue to run.

Hikari opened the door to the manor and it gave a loud creak. Her eye scanned the empty manor with a frown, cautiously walking inside. It looked like a typical abandoned and haunted looking manor like those in the movies. Dark. Ripped curtains. Squeaky floorboards. And scary portraits. But it was strange. The manor wasn't crawling with Heartless and other spooky things like she expected it should. She jumped at the sound of the door closing shut with a bang.

Hikari glanced back to look at the door. "...I have a bad feeling about this..." she narrowed her eye as she summoned her rod into hand.

"Hey! I thought you were looking for this!" A voice shouted from above her, making her turn around to look. It was Lock, Shock and Barrel. All three of them present right before her eyes. Shock jiggled the Thalassa charm in her hand, showing to the brunette that she still has it. "Don't you want it back?" the girl giggled.

"Of course! Now hand it over!" Hikari reached her left hand out, hoping for the girl to threw the charm back to her.

"You have to catch us first!"

"Fine by me!" Hikari shouted as she headed straight for the staircase. Her eye were kept on Lock, Shock and Barrel who were floors above her. She tried to run as quickly as she can to reach them, but Heartless suddenly showed up to slow her down. She swung her rod left and right, hitting the Heartless that threw itself at her. She continued to advance forward, ignoring a few Heartless to save some time. "Thunder!" she raised her rod and lightning struck down, eliminating the Heartless.

The brunette strapped her rod on her belt before she used a chair to jump higher to reach the base of the railing. Her hands gripped on the edge of the railing. She pulled herself up and found that she was already on the same floor as Lock, Shock and Barrel.

"Uh oh!" the three prankster quickly turned around to escape.

"Hold it!" Hikari clicked her tongue in annoyance when the three kids ran off again. She followed after them outside to the platform circling the manor. She pointed her rod directly at Lock, Shock and Barrel. "Freeze!" she casted and a ray of blue light was shot from her rod, creating an ice block to stop the three kids from running further away.

"Waaa!" Shock exclaimed when she came face to face with the ice block.

"There's no running now." Hikari said as she cornered the three kids. She furrowed her eyebrow at them, a frown visible on her lips. She lowered her rod when she noticed the three pranksters were shaking in fear. She was mad at them, yes, but that doesn't mean she wanted to hurt them or damage their brains with nightmares of her attacking them. "That good luck charm, give it back to me." she reached her left hand out, her voice stern.

"Okay! Okay! Just don't hurt us!" Lock shouted as he snatched the good luck charm from Shock's hand. He threw it at the brunette who caught it with her left hand.

Hikari stared at the Thalassa charm with relief, her eyes softened as she stared at Kairi's charm. She was glad that nothing bad happened to it. She carefully placed the good luck charm back into her pouch before looking at the three kids with a frown. "Why did you three stole it? Answer truthfully or else I'm gonna bonk your heads!" she threatened.

"W-We didn't mean to! It was all Barrel's idea!" Shock blamed, pointing her finger at the shortest of the group.

Lock nodded his head furiously. "Yeah! It was all his idea!"

Barrel was taken aback when his siblings snitched him. "It's not my idea!" he said, waving his hands frantically in front of him when Hikari turned to look at him. "It was Oogie Boogie's idea! I swear! He was the one who told us to steal your charm!" he shielded his head to prevent Hikari from hitting him.

Hikari's eyes widened when she heard the name. "Oogie Boogie?!" she shouted in surprise. That no good bag of hay is the one behind all of this?! She frowned deeply at the thought of Oogie Boogie causing mayhem at Halloween Town. She knew that he was scary looking and all, but she didn't really know that his original world is Halloween Town. She placed a hand on her chin and furrowed her eyebrow down. "...it kind of makes sense that he's from here..." she mumbled.

"It took you this long to realize? Congratulations!" A voice mocked her. Hikari's eye widened as she recognize the voice. She turned around, summoning her rod to face the Boogie man. She gritted her teeth when she eyed the monster. She glanced over to her left and right when Lock, Shock and Barrel ran past her to Oogie Boogie. She reached her hand out to stop them, but stopped when they ran past Oogie Boogie too. She turned her attention to the monster with a glare. "Give a prize to the little scarecrow!" he continued.

"Why did you tell them to steal Kairi's good luck charm?! What do you possibly want from it!" Hikari demanded, standing in a fighting stance.

Oogie Boogie laughed. "Isn't it obvious?" he waved his finger-less hand and a few Heartless came at his command. Hikari glanced around with a wide eye, gritting her teeth at the sight of the Heartless surrounding her. Now she get the reason behind Lock, Shock and Barrel stealing Kairi's good luck charm. He wanted to lure her away from everyone. "Let's have a little chat now, shall we?" he smirked.

"I don't want to talk to an old smelly bag like you!" Hikari waved her rod, glaring at him.

Oogie Boogie placed a hand to where his heart is, giving the brunette a hurtful look. "Ohhh! That's hurts really." he said sarcastically. His fake frown turned to a smirk when he look at the girl. "How could you say that when we're both the same?" he said.

Hikari gave him a look. "Just because I'm dressed as a scarecrow and you're an old bag of bugs, doesn't mean that we're the same." she said, glaring at the boogie man.

Oogie Boogie laughed, throwing his head back. "I wasn't just referring to that! You see, you and I have so many similarities to begin with!" he said and Hikari gave him a confused look. There was just no way she have any similarities with this man. She already knew the answer. This boogie man was crazy and doesn't know a single thing about her, but she decided to listen to what he wants to say anyway. "Like memories! Our memories are not the prettiest, don't you think? Bad memories everywhere from the start!" he said, moving his arms.

Hikari's eye widened when he referred to something like memories.

"Ah! So I'm right!" Oogie Boogie leaned a bit forward, moving his right hand to point at Hikari. "And don't get me started on no one giving a single care for you... Like geez! Has everyone always been comparing you?" he placed his hands on his hips.

The brunette could only stare at Oogie Boogie with a wide eye. It almost seemed like he knew what was going on. She averted her gaze away from Oogie Boogie, looking at the wooden floor beneath them.

"Let's face it! Everyone left you, but us? We'll still accept you even if you betrayed us!" Oogie Boogie said. He was clearly informed of the little stunt she pulled back at Hollow Bastion. The boogie man was also informed of the girl's past from Riku and it was clear that they boy was growing hatred towards the younger girl. But alas, he can't actually harm his ex-friend because of the request Maleficent told him. The silver-haired boy agreed on one term. That is if she told him how Hikari can wield his keyblade for a short time. "How about it, kiddo?" he asked, taking a step forward.

Hikari frowned at him.

"Aw c'mon! Sometimes in life, you gotta take a risk." Oogie Boogie said, noticing the look on Hikari's face. "You know? Make a gamble of things in life."

Hikari placed her hand over her chest, staring at the floor. "I know that not all things that happened in the past made pretty good memories for me to remember..." she began as she closed her eye, thinking back to all the things that happened in the past. She opened her eye and lifted her chin up to look at Oogie Boogie. "But those bad memories are the ones who made me the way I am today! I remembered my mistakes so I wouldn't make the same mistake twice!" she lowered herself a little to a fighting stance.

Oogie Boogie stared at the brunette before shaking his head with a heavy sigh. "Well... I tried." he shrugged his shoulders before raising his hand. "Listen to my orders! Attack!" he motioned his hand for the Heartless to attack her.

Hikari narrowed her eye as the Heartless began to attack her. She dodged an incoming fireball with her rod and shot back at the Heartless using the same Fire attack. She brought her rod up to shield herself from the Heartless that took form as bats. They kept on flying near to her, cornering her to the edge of the platform. She finally lost her footing and slipped. She quickly released her rod, letting it fall. She reached her hand out just in time to catch on one of the branches around the platform. Her hands gripped the branches to keep herself from falling down. She hung over the edge as she tried to pull herself up back to safety. The wind blew, blowing the straw hat she was wearing off from her head.

"It really is too bad, but at least I tried right?" Oogie Boogie appeared, looming over her dangling form. He stared down at her with a smirk. Hikari glared back at him, now with both eyes. "Do me a favor and let go, now will you?" he laughed as he stepped on Hikari's hand to make her let go.

Hikari gritted her teeth. It didn't hurt a lot since he was made from an old smell sack, but the Heartless bats were really annoying as they always tried to make her fall.

"Hahaha! What the-!" Oogie Boogie exclaimed in surprise when something zoomed up in front of his face in speed. Hikari glanced up to look at what stopped Oogie Boogie from stomping his feet on her hands. Her eyes widened when she saw that it was Zero! The little ghost dog who likes to go pass through her. He was distracting Oogie Boogie by floating around him, going through him a few times to make him giggle and laugh uncomfortably. "Why you little mutt! Hahaha stop it!" he shouted in anger as he moved back.

Hikari took that opportunity to pull herself back up. She paused when she came face to face with a gloved hand. She followed the hand up to the arm and the the face. Her eyes widened and her lips were slightly parted when she saw who the hand belongs to.

"You okay?" Sora asked, smiling, his fangs showing. Hikari took his hand and he helped his sister up to safety. He kneel beside his sister, placing his hand on her back in a comforting manner. In his other hand, he was holding Hikari's straw hat. "Sorry we're late..." he apologized, putting the straw hat back on Hikari's head.

Hikari stared at her brother with a smile. "Thanks."

Sora smiled back before his smile turned to a frown when his eyes are averted to Oogie Boogie. He stood up, summoning his keyblade. "I'm gonna teach you a lesson! No one and I mean no one hurts my little sister!" he shouted as he charged forward.

Donald stood beside Hikari and handed her a blue rod. "Let's kick this guy's butt!" he said, making Hikari nod her head in agreement.

The two magic users raised their rod above their head, pointing it directly at Oogie Boogie. "Thunder!" the two shouted in unison.

Sora grinned at how both Donald and Hikari worked together. He stopped a few feet away from Oogie Boogie when the combined lightning from Donald and Hikari strike him. When the lightning disappeared, he jumped forward, swinging his keyblade to hit Oogie Boogie's belly. He kept on pushing him back inside the manor, a confident smirk on his face as the boogie man was losing.

"Take this!" Sora swung his keyblade one last time at Oogie Boogie, making him fall over the railing. He leaned against the railing, watching as Oogie Boogie landed on the first floor. The sack monster looked dizzy as he sat up, rubbing his head. "That's what you get for hurting my sister!" he cupped his mouth with one hand, shouting at the man.

"Nice job, Sora!" Jack complimented. "With you on our side, Oogie Boogie won't stand a chance!" he said.

Sora grinned sheepishly at the compliment. He turned his head when Donald, Goofy and Hikari entered the manor. They smiled at him and he smiled back. He high-fived with Hikari, talking and complimenting each other about how they fought today.

Oogie Boogie frowned deeply as his whole body shook with anger. First, that girl refused to follow him. Second, that dog interfered. Third, that keyblade brat wiped the floor with him! He had enough. He began to emit a dark aura around him, circling his whole body as his body shook.

"Nobody disrespects me! NOBODY!" Oogie Boogie shouted and the whole manor shook.

Both Sora and Hikari almost fell to the floor, but they both quickly balanced each other, preventing one and another from falling. The two brunettes quickly went over to the railing, staring down to the first floor to look at what Oogie Boogie was doing. Their eyes widened when they saw Oogie Boogie pulled out the artificial heart and swallowed it. Oogie Boogie was then covered in a dark mist. Sora grabbed his sister's hand and dragged her out of the manor and to the platform circling the manor. Donald, Goofy and Jack followed the two brunettes, just in time to see that the whole manor had transformed.

"We'll see if you can defeat me now, keyblade brat!" Oogie Boogie laughed, looking down at the group with a sinister smile.

"Oh I will!" Sora retorted as he stared back at Oogie Boogie with a glare.

Jack glanced left and right, noticing that something was odd. "I think those are the ones giving him power!" he said, pointing over to the black orbs.

"So all we have to do is destroy those orbs, right?" Goofy asked as he raised his shield, blocking an incoming piece of wood when the wind around them blew harshly.

"Can't hurt to try!" Hikari shouted over the wind. She threw her rod at the black orb with all her might. The black orb shattered into millions of pieces and disappeared in black smoke. Right after the orb was destroyed, Oogie Boogie screamed out in pain. The brunette caught the spinning back into her hand and glanced up to look at the sack monster. "Well, it seemed to work! Let's do it!" she said, raising her rod.

Sora ran forward and jumped up to a platform, heading towards the next orb they have to destroy. He stumbled when the floor moved. The floor moved up and down like waves, separating him from his sister. He kneeled down to the floor, steadying himself as he looked over his shoulder. Hikari looked up, noticing that her brother was looking at her. She gave him a reassuring nod, telling her brother that she's okay.

Hikari threw her rod to hit the Heartless behind Sora, killing it off. "Don't worry about us! You handle the old bag and we'll handle the Heartless!" she grinned, giving a thumbs up as Jack also nodded.

Sora glanced over to Donald and Goofy who nodded in return. "Okay! But be careful!" he shouted, turning back to face Oogie Boogie with his eyebrows furrowed down.

Hikari nodded and turned around to face the Heartless. "Alright! Let's end this!"

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari watch Sora as he raised his keyblade to lock the world's keyhole. They had defeated Oogie Boogie and it wasn't that easy. The Heartless kept on coming to attack them, but luckily both Jack and Hikari were able to keep them at bay long enough for Sora, Donald and Goofy to take care of Oogie Boogie once and for all.

The brunette looked at the sky, staring at the spot where the keyhole was. She wondered if Riku could do the same too with his keyblade, but she doubt that he would actually do that after all the things he went through. He was taking Maleficent's words too seriously and he didn't even bother to listen to her or Sora. She really did wish Riku would listen to his best friend instead of the witch lady he just met.

Sora placed his hand on Hikari's shoulder, snapping her away from her thoughts. She turned to look at him and returned the smile he gave her. They all returned back to the lab empty handed. They were able to get the artificial heart since Oogie Boogie ate it to merge himself with his manor and to control more powerful Heartless.

Sally turned to look at them when they entered the lab, glum looks on their face. "Welcome back... I'm guessing things didn't go well?" she gave them a sad smile.

Goofy nodded. "Guess you could say that." he answered, slumping his shoulders.

"But on the bright side, we did defeat Oogie Boogie, right?" Donald said as he tried to brighten the mood.

Hikari nodded her head in agreement. "Yeah, we did, right? I'm sure we can think of something up for Halloween other than making the Heartless dance right?" she turned to face Jack, giving him a grin.

Jack shook his head, sighing. "Looks like we have to cancel Halloween this year... There's just too much damage done by Oogie Boogie..." They all turned to the Pumpkin King who had a frown on his usually scary yet cheerful face. "Oh well... Looks like we'll just have to move it to next year!" his face suddenly brightens when he spoke.

Sora and Hikari glanced at each other, surprised that the Pumpkin King could cheer himself up. "You're not upset?" Sora asked, tilting his head confusedly. If it was him, he would be bummed out for the rest of the week. Jack smiled, placing his hands on his hips. "Why should I when I know for sure that next year's Halloween is going to be the best and the scariest?" he laughed, placing his hands on each of Sora's and Hikari's shoulder. He bend his knees a little to look at them. "So be sure you guys come back next year, alright?"

"Of course!" Sora grinned.

"Definitely!" Hikari said, before something circled her. She glanced down to look at Zero, floating near her feet. The brunette smiled at the ghost dog before she kneeled down to the dog's level. She reached her hand out to pat the dog's head, but hesitated. "I guess I didn't thank you before, huh, Zero? I guess... Not all ghost are bad and spooky... Thanks boy." she finally muster enough courage to pat the dog's head, but her hand went through.

Zero flew right through her again a few times, wagging his tail.

Sora laughed. "See? It's not so bad right?"

Hikari gave Sora a deadpan look before turning her head to face Zero. "Zero... Get him." she said, pointing her finger at her own brother.

The brunet blinked, taking a step back.

"Huh? Wait-What?! Zero stop! Down boy! Down! Arggh! That feeling!" Sora shouted as Zero passed through him. The brunet went to his knees, shivering.

Everyone laughed, but Hikari's laughter was the loudest.

"Now what were you saying? Not that bad?"

"...shut up."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

* * *

Sora slumped on his seat. It was a pretty tiring day. First, he found his sister. And second, he went to Halloween Town to fight that Oogie Boogie. He stretched his arms above his head and a loud 'pop' was heard from his back, making him sigh in relief. He turned his head to face Hikari, who sat on her own seat in the Gummi Ship. He couldn't help but grin. It was great having his sister travel by his side.

"So where to next?" Sora asked the pilot of the ship.

Donald shrugged. "We'll look for another world to look for the King." he said as he flew the Gummi ship around the Lanes in Between.

Hikari yawned loudly. "I don't know about you guys... But I'm taking some Zzzs!" she said, leaning her cheek against her knuckles as her elbow was rested on the armrest.

Goofy nodded his head in agreement. "Great idea!" he said as he tucked his head deeper into his head.

Sora glanced over to Goofy and Hikari before grinning. "Me too then!" he said, crossing his arms and making himself comfortable on the chair.

"WAK! Don't you guys dare leave me alone!" Donald quacked angrily as he turned to each of his friends.

Just when Donald was about to turn his head back to face the wheel, a giant ship suddenly hit them, making the whole ship shook violently.

* * *

A/N:

Sorry there's no battle between Oogie Boogie and Sora. I just felt like there were too many scenes going one in this chapter and haha well...

But I do hope that you guys like this chapter ^_^


	16. Chapter 16

A/N:

Special thanks to Sparrowhawk8.20 for adding this story to their favs!

Special thanks to Seastorm25 for adding this story to their alerts!

BlueXRedKnight: We'll see in this chapter ;)

Guest: Haha That's a great idea!

Guest: Awww thank you so much! Fleabag! Why didn't I think of that? Haha. And yeah! No one messed with family! Haha lol Nobody. I'm surprised that I manged to complete it too ^^ well, it's very very very different from the game

DisneyFreak-Lover: haha yeah

* * *

Chapter 16  
faith

Sora opened his eyes, blinking owlishly as he regain his consciousness. He stared at the dark sky. He never remembered Donald landing the ship on a world. The last thing he remembered was that large ship crashing into their Gummi ship. His eyes suddenly widened in realization. The Gummi ship never landed. He quickly turned his head to the side and his eyes grew wide when he saw a pirate like Heartless carrying him.

"Hands off!" Sora shouted as he summoned his keyblade. He swung his arm around, taking the Heartless out as he landed on the wooden deck with a soft thud. His blue eyes glanced around as he tried to look for his sister and his two friends. "Guys! Where are you?!" he shouted, glancing around frantically.

"Sora." A voice made him look up to the upper deck. "Who is more important to you?"

"Riku?! You're the one behind this?!" Sora shouted in disbelief, staring at his best friend.

Riku stared down at the brunet, his eyes held a hard gaze. "Are you looking for them?" he asked and stepped aside, reviling a redhead with a blank gaze. Sora's eyes widened at the sight of the familiar redhead. "Or her?"

"Kairi!" Sora ran forward, reaching his hand out. He stopped when more Heartless appeared, blocking his path to his friends. He furrowed his eyebrows, glaring at the Heartless around him. He swung his keyblade at them and gritted his teeth when the Heartless kept on multiplying. He turned his head to face the silver haired boy. "Riku! Why are you helping them! You know that they're doing something bad!" he demanded an answer from him.

Riku's lips curled up to a smirk as he raised his hand. "I help them and in return... I received the power to manipulate the Heartless. I'm not afraid of anything now." he said.

Sora's eyes were wide as he took a step back. "The Heartless are dangerous, Riku! They will eventually consume your heart!" he warned, thinking back to the people who used the dark powers. "You have to stop it before it's too late!"

"That's only if you're weak." Riku replied and Sora's frown deepened. His blue-green eyes stared at Sora with a cold and hard gaze. His ex-best friend's face just reminds him too much of Hikari. It's not just because they're siblings and looked almost identical, but it's their gaze that held the most similarity. Anger and yet concern as well. "And judging the fact that you and Hikari are almost the same... You'll fall right into it in a second flat." he mocked.

"Wha-! Riku! Don't say that! Hikari is strong! The both of us are!" Sora's grip on his keyblade tightened. He was mad at Riku for judging him and his sister's strength. He placed his left hand over his heart. "I know that we both lacked in some things... But we have each other! And we'll always help each other out in the things we lack! Because that's what siblings do!" he shouted and lowered himself in a fighting stance.

Riku snorted. "How childish... Do you still keep that Sibling Oath of yours?" he raised his hand and snapped his fingers. Sora blinked when his shadow moved without him moving. He moved back when his shadow came to life, standing right in front of his eyes. "No matter... That stupid Oath of yours can't save your from this." he smirked.

Sora stared wide eyed at the shadow. "Wha... What's this?!"

"Impressive, right? This is what the darkness can do." Riku said, turning around to face Kairi. He picked her up gently and turned back to face Sora, who kept on staring at him with wide eyes. The silver haired teen narrowed his eyes. "Enough... Go join your friends now." with a flick of his wrist, the floor beneath Sora suddenly opened, reviling that he was standing over a trap door.

"Riku!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari groaned as she opened her eyes. She remembered a ship hitting the Gummi ship and then nothing. Everything past the crash was a blur to her. It was either the other ship's fault or Donald's driving. Either way, she hoped nothing like that ever happened again. She pushed herself up, rubbing her throbbing head as she glanced around. Her stared at her surroundings with wide eyes. She didn't remember the Gummi ship's interior being so old styled.

The brunette stood up, circling in place to examine the room better. It looked so old-school with the wooden interior. The wood creaked under her feet and the room seemed to sway left and right gently as if it was on water. The room was basically empty, except for a few wooden crates and barrels stacked at the corners.

"I don't remember... our ship being this old..." Hikari walked around, examining the room.

"Has it really been that long? Or have you just forgot?" A voice made her jump. Hikari quickly turned around, summoning her rod into hand. She knew that tone of voice no matter how hard she tried to forget. Her blue eyes stared at her silver haired friend, her eyebrows slightly furrowed down. A frown was seen on her lips as she lowered her rod. "Don't you remember? This is Hook's ship." the boy reminded, raising his hand a little.

Hikari turned her head left and right. "Can't blame me when I never been in here before." she retorted, earning a snort from him.

"Same old Hikari... Always looking for excuses." Riku mocked as he took a few steps closer.

The brunette glanced left and right. "Where's Sora, Donald and Goofy?" she asked, raising her rod a little.

Riku frowned. "What? No Kairi this time?"

"You know that's not what I mea-!" Hikari stopped when Riku suddenly summoned his keyblade. She backed away and raised her rod defensively, afraid that Riku would attack her. Before their island disappeared, she wasn't afraid when Riku raised his wooden sword against her. She would cockily raise her own wooden sword at him. But now, right after she knew that he wasn't afraid to raise his keyblade against her, she was scared and felt a little intimidated by him.

Riku looked at the keyblade in his hand before glancing at Hikari. "Think fast." he said, tossing his keyblade to her. Out of surprise, Hikari dropped her rod and caught the keyblade with both her hands. She stumbled a little at the extra weight, but quickly balanced herself. Her right hand held the handle as her left hand was placed over the shaft. Suddenly, the keyblade glowed brightly and disappeared from her hand, appearing back into the original wielder's hand. "Huh... Looks like it's true..." he mumbled, staring at his keyblade.

Hikari kneeled down to take her rod from the floor. "What's true?" she asked, her eyes still glued on the boy in front of her.

Riku smirked, raising his keyblade. "Isn't it obvious? Your heart is weak." he said.

Hikari's eyes widened at the insult. "My heart's not weak! My heart is strong! I know it!" she yelled, placing her left hand over her chest as he right hand tightened its grip around her rod.

"This keyblade is proof that your heart is not strong enough." Riku said as he raised his keyblade horizontally. He summoned the keyblade away and lowered his hand. "The keyblade is only for one with a strong heart . You were just lucky last time." he continued, placing a hand over his chest.

Hikari clicked her tongue, gritting her teeth as she tried to hold in her anger. She knew that Riku changed ever since he left Destiny Islands, but she never thought that he would change this much! "What happened to you Riku? You've changed! You're not like this when we were back at our world!" she shouted, glaring at him.

Riku furrowed his eyebrows. "I've changed? Haven't you changed too?" he asked back. "Check yourself first before accusing someone." he said, turning around to head for the door.

"Riku, wait!" Hikari yelled as she ran towards the door. Just as she was about to reach the door, he slammed the door shut and a loud click was heard from the other side. She slammed her fists against the thick wooden door and then tried to push open the door, but all attempts failed as the door was locked. "Why don't you check yourself too!" she shouted, giving the door one last hit.

"Why don't you cool down for a few hours?" Was the last thing Hikari heard from Riku.

Hikari blinked. "Huh? Wait? What! Riku!" she yelled out, trying to push the door open with all her might. She pressed her ear against the door and heard his footsteps fading further and further. She just can't believed it! Riku just left her in this room! Alone! She huffed before glaring at the door. She glanced down at her empty hand. She lifted her hand up, flexing her fingers. "I wonder..." she mumbled.

The brunette closed her eyes tightly as she tried to imagine a giant key appearing in her hand. She thought long and hard, but nothing came to her hand. The only weapon that would come back at her command was the rod that Merlin gave her, but that won't actually open the door, now will it? If she used fire, the whole ship would be in flames less than a minute and if used anything else, the magic won't damage the door since her magic is still limited. She sighed deeply, lowering her hand.

"I can't give up just yet!" Hikari moved back to the wall. She glanced at the door before running towards it, trying to ram the door open. Her shoulder hit the wooden door and she fell to the floor, lying flat on her back as she rubbed her shoulder to ease the pain. "Ugh... Aw... Never again..." she said in pain, casting cure.

Hikari stared at the ceiling, sighing before she sat up.

 _'What Riku said... Was it true? Is my heart really...weak?'_ Hikari thought sadly as she summoned her rod away. She gripped on her shirt over where her heart should be. She reached her left hand out to her pouch, fishing something out. Her blue eyes stared at the Thalassa charm Kairi made. She really wished she could summon a keyblade to prove Riku wrong, but what good will that be if she doesn't have the requirements to be a wielder? She laid back down to the floor and closed her eyes, her forearm over her eyes.

"Hello? Are you alright down there?" a feminine voice lanced with worry made the brunette open her eyes. She sat up, glancing around to look for the girl who asked her, but the room was empty. She stood up and placed the Thalassa charm back to her pouch as she waited for the voice to call her again. "I heard some yelling and I was wondering if you are alright." the voice said again.

Hikari looked around. "Where are you?" she asked.

"I am at the floor above you, but you can see me through the net on the far right corner of the room." Hikari followed the girl's instructions. She walked towards the right corner of the room and she looked up. Her eyes widened when she saw a light brown haired girl dressed in a blue nightgown, peering down at her with concern. The brunette climbed up the wooden crates to be closer to the girl. She sat on the very top of the stacked crates and tilted her head up to look at the girl. "I am sorry, but I overheard what you and your friend are talking about... Are you alright?" she asked again.

Hikari gave the girl a short laugh. "Yeah, I'm okay. Don't worry about me." she said, giving a smile. "I'm Hikari. What's your name?" she introduced.

The girl placed a hand on her chest. "My name is Wendy. Wendy Darling." she introduced, bowing her head a little.

"Wendy..." Hikari repeated. "How did you get on Captain Crab-I mean, Hook's ship?" she corrected, mentally slapping herself that Wendy doesn't know who the nickname she gave Hook.

"I-," Wendy paused when she heard the door opened with a creak. Hikari blinked confusedly when the light brown haired girl suddenly laid down, pretending to be asleep. The brunette decided to listen closely and she held her breath when she heard footsteps from the floor above her. A minute passed as she stared at Wendy with worry, afraid that a pirate might take the girl away to Hook or something. She let out the breath she was holding when the door closed and Wendy sat back up. "I apologize... There was someone in the room." she said, giving an apologetic smile to the brunette.

Hikari shook her head. "No, I understand. What did that pirate do anyway?" she asked.

"Pirate? Oh no, no, he was not a pirate. He dresses differently than a pirate, you see." Wendy explained and Hikari raised an eyebrow. "He brought someone in... A girl with red hair..." she trailed off as she went to check on the girl.

Hikari's eyes widened. "Kairi!" she shouted in realization. She quickly pulled herself up from a sitting position. She stood on the box, trying to get as close as possible to the net on the ceiling to look. She stood on her toes as her hands gripped on the iron net. "Is she alright? Is she hurt? Can you please check if she's hurt?" she asked in concern.

Wendy crawled back to where the iron net is, staring down at Hikari with a small frown. "She looked dazed... And she is not responding to anything I have asked." she answered.

The brunette sighed and released her hold of the iron net. "Kairi's...been like that ever since I found her..." she mumbled to herself. She lifted her chin up and she looked around the room. "There has to be a way to reach you guys." she said, looking up to Wendy.

Wendy also looked around, trying to find a way out besides the locked and heavily guarded door.

Hikari stared at the iron net and she furrowed her eyebrows in determination. "Stand back Wendy, I'm gonna try and break this net." she instructed as she summoned her rod into hand. She raised her rod, pointing it directly at the iron net. "Fire!" she casted and the flames burned the iron until it turned red.

The brunette quickly stick the hilt of her rod to the hot iron, trying to shape the iron net to make a hole big enough for her to go through. Sweat poured down from her forehead as she put all of her strength and magic to make a hole. As soon as she was done and sure that the hole she made was big enough, she cast Blizzard to cool the iron faster. She hit the block of ice with her rod and shielded her head from the pieces of ice as it shatters.

Wendy reached her hand down for Hikari to take. Hikari placed her rod on her belt and took Wendy's hand gladly. As soon as the brunette went through the hole, she laid flat on her back on the wooden floor, completely wiped out as she used all of her magic and strength to make that hole.

"You are very smart." Wendy complimented, smiling at the tired brunette.

Hikari laughed. "Thanks. You're the first person who ever said that." she wiped the sweat from her forehead, grinning from ear to ear. She sat up and reached her hand to take an Ether from her pouch. She used the Ether before turning to face Wendy. "Let's get out of here." she said determinedly.

Wendy gave Hikari a sad smile. "But how? The door is heavily guarded by those monsters." she said.

"Don't worry... I'll think of something..." Hikari placed her hand on her chin as she began to think.

"Wendy! There you are! I've been looking all over for you!" A boy shouted and he came from the hole Hikari made. Hikari's eyes widened when she saw the boy flew towards them. The boy could fly! He was floating in midair! No wires. No nothing! "Let's get out of here!" the boy said, holding onto Wendy's hand.

Hikari's eye twitched. "Y-You're flying!" he shouted, pointing her finger at him.

The boy turned towards Hikari and he flew closer, scrutinizing her. "A face like Sora... You must be Hikari! Nice to meet you! The name's Peter Pan!" Peter introduced, offering his hand.

"You can fly!" Hikari shouted in bewilderment.

"Yeah, well you can too with a little bit of Pixie dust." Peter smiled, but his smile dropped when he realized that the small pixie isn't with him. "But Tink's not here at the moment, so no pixie dust." he shrugged his shoulder.

Hikari nodded, she opened her mouth to speak, but stopped when they heard loud footsteps coming towards their way.

Hikari looked up to Peter and then to Wendy. They both nodded their head at her. The brunette quickly ran towards the door, hiding behind it as she prepares her rod to attack. Peter on the other hand, easily flew to the ceiling. There was no time to think of a plan. The only thing that crossed her head was hit or use Sleep to the person who came through the door with her rod and escaped with Wendy, Peter and Kairi and then find Sora, Donald and Goofy.

The door opened widely and if Hikari wasn't quick enough to hold the door from hitting her, she would've ended with a broken nose or something.

"Time to go girls! Off to the Captain's room!" The short man exclaimed, running into the room with a few Heartless.

Hikari quickly sidestepped, reviling herself to the man. "Sleep!" she cast and the man fell forward, sleeping soundly on the floor. She then jumped over the man, swinging her rod down to slash the Heartless that was holding Wendy's arm. She pointed her rod at the Heartless that were trying to get a hold of Kairi. "Blizzard!" she shouted and her magic froze the two Heartless inside the blocks of ice.

The brunette went over towards Kairi and gently placed the redhead on her back. "Let's go." she said to Wendy and Peter.

Peter took out his knife. "Take Wendy with you! I'll handle the monsters here!" he ordered and Hikari nodded.

The brunette leaded the way as they ran away from the room.

Hikari did her best to defend Wendy and Kairi at the same time, but it was a little hard since she was carrying Kairi on her back. She tucked her hand under Kairi's knees as her other hand held her rod tightly, casting magic whenever it was needed. The Heartless kept on appeared left and right, making it difficult for the girls to escape the ship. Finally they made it to the deck, panting heavily. The two girls quickly went over to the railing, peering over to look at the dark sea.

"We can use the boat to escape." Wendy pointed her finger at the lifeboats.

Hikari nodded and the two ran towards the lifeboat.

"Must you always cause me trouble, Hikari?" Both Hikari and Wendy froze. The two girls turned to face the person and Hikari quickly stood in front of Wendy, lowering herself to a fighting stance. Once again, she met Riku in the most unpleasant situation. The silver haired boy stood a few feet away from her, his eyes glaring at her and only her. "I'm beginning to think that the only thing you do is cause trouble." he continued, taking a few steps closer.

Hikari frowned. "Don't come any closer!" she shouted.

Riku stopped and reached his hand out. "Then give Kairi back to me. I don't need that girl since she's not the Princess of Heart." he said.

"As if I'm gonna do that!" Hikari placed Kairi down gently and gave Wendy a look, as if she was saying to her to stay with Kairi. Wendy nodded and kneeled beside the redhead, her hands holding her shoulders to steady the unconscious girl. "We're friends... But I'm not letting you near Kairi if you continue to be like this!" she ran closer, giving space between the fight from Wendy and Kairi.

Riku summoned his keyblade and raised it above his head. "I'm not afraid to use the keyblade against you." he said.

"I know... which is why I'm not afraid to use this either. Fire!" Hikari directed her rod at him, and a burst of fire was shot towards him.

The silver-haired boy dodged her attack easily, sidestepping to avoid the flames. He lunged forward, pulling back his keyblade. He thrust his keyblade at her and she moved to the right, avoiding the tip of the keyblade. She kept on moving back when Riku swung his keyblade continuously at her, not giving her any time to counter his attacks. Her back suddenly hit the wooden pole and she quickly ducked down. Riku slashed the place where Hikari's head was, leaving a large gash on the wood. Hikari quickly dodge rolled away from Riku and brought her rod up to block Riku's keyblade. Their weapons clashed as they battle their strength.

Hikari's arms were shaking as she tried to push Riku back. Riku knew that he was winning when he saw that Hikari was struggling to push him back. He pulled back, letting her take a few seconds of breath before he swung his keyblade at her again, knocking the rod away from her hands. She reached her hand out to her rod, but stopped when she felt the tip of her keyblade pressed against her neck.

"Hikari!" Wendy shouted in concern as she stared at the scene with wide eyes.

Riku stared Hikari down, his eyes cold. "Just give it up. You have no chance against me." he said.

Hikari gave Riku a horrified look, feeling the cold metal of the keyblade pressed against her neck.

"Hikari!"

Riku jumped away when Sora swung his keyblade at him. The silver-haired teen clicked his tongue at the sight of the brunet with his two friends by his side.

"Sora..." Hikari stared at her brother with wide blue eyed, but they were filled with relief.

Sora glanced over to Donald and Goofy who nodded. He quickly went to her sister's side, kneeling beside her as he checked for any injuries. He stared at her with a worried look. "You okay?" he asked.

Hikari nodded her head as she finally snapped out from her shock. "Yeah..."

Sora sighed in relief. Hikari held Sora's hand as he helped her up, his warm harms steadying her as she stumbled a little. She placed her hand on Goofy's shoulder as the royal guard helped her.

Sora smiled at his sister reassuringly before he turned his head towards his best friend angrily. "Riku! Have you gone mad? This is Hikari! Why would you try to hurt her!" he demanded, stepping forward.

Riku scoffed. "You know the answer."

Sora lowered himself to a fighting stance. " _'She was in the way'_? She was only trying to help Kairi and Wendy!" he shouted. He furrowed his eyebrows down as he took a deep breath. "We all have different ways to help Kairi, but it's clear that your way is the wrong one!"

Riku stared at Sora with a hard gaze. "You're wasting my time." he said and snapped his fingers. The shadow beneath Sora came to life as he turned his back on his friends. He walked closer to Wendy and with a flick of his wrist, the Heartless pulled her away from Kairi. The silver haired teen kneeled down and lifted Kairi up into his arms as he summoned the corridor of darkness. "The next time we meet, I won't go easy on you." he said, narrowing his eyes at the two brunettes.

Sora watched as Riku went through the portal with Kairi. He swung his keyblade at his own shadow as he ran towards where Riku and Kairi are. He arrived a few seconds too late. He gritted his teeth as once again his friends slipped away from his fingers. He turned his head to Wendy and raised his keyblade to kill the Heartless holding her captive.

"Hold it boy!" Sora stopped in his tracks when he heard Hook shouted at him. He turned to face the captain on the upper deck. "Hand over that key of yours if you wish to save this girl's and the little pixie!" he holds over a brown and dirty sack, shaking it up and down.

"What?!" Sora gave him a look, glancing over to his keyblade.

"If you don't then off to the plank and into the cold waters for you!" Hook shouted, pointing his hook to the plan on their left.

Hikari's left eye twitched. "How about I make you walk the plank sideways like you're supposed to, Captain Crabby!" she raised her fist threateningly at him.

"Insolent brat!" Hook stomped his foot on the floor angrily.

Sora placed his hand on Hikari's shoulder. "It's okay Hikari... I have a plan." he said and walking over towards the plank, making Hikari, Donald and Goofy stare at him in confusion.

"Sora! Wait!" Hikari shouted when Sora stood on the edge of the plank. Her eyes widened when he spread his arms out and fell backwards. She quickly ran over to the edge and prepared to jump into the water to save her brother, but stopped when she saw him floating. Her blue eyes were still wide and her jaws dropped at the sight of her brother flying. She caught the wink he gave and she slowly nodded, still shocked at the fact that her brother could fly. "You gotta pay for that!" she turned around, trying to distract Hook long enough for Sora to sneak behind him.

Hook laughed as he stared down at Hikari. He waved his hand and a while bunch of Heartless appeared around them. Hikari, Donald and Goofy stood back to back as they face the Heartless.

"Do you see this Peter Pan?! I won this time!" Hook shouted at the sky.

"Oh I think you need to take a rain check on that, Captain Crabby." Hook's hat was suddenly stolen from his head. The captain turned around abruptly and saw Peter Pan floating above him. He quickly took out his sword, swinging it around randomly to hurt the ginger-haired boy. The boy dodged his swings easily. "Is this all you got?" the boy laughed.

"Blast!" Hook cursed, tightening his hold on his sword.

"Take this!" Sora appeared right behind him, swinging his keyblade to hit Hook right on his head to let Tinkerbell go. The little fairy quickly flew out of the dirty sack and headed straight for Sora, flying right beside his face. He flew higher when one of the flying Heartless attempted to clawed him. His eyes widened when a blue rod suddenly spun around, hitting the Heartless in the process. His eyes followed the rod and it went back to his sister's hand, who smiled at him. He smiled in return before turning to Hook. "Give up, Crabs! You're done for!" he crossed his arms with a confident smirk.

Hook's shoulder shook in anger. He suddenly froze when he heard something ticking. His head followed the rhythm before he went over to the railing, leaning his head closer to listen better. His eyes widened when he saw something emerging from the water. A giant crocodile was seen, its mouth opened widely as it lays eyes on Hook.

"Off you go!" Peter appeared behind the captain and out of surprise, Hook fell into the water, yelling 'Smee' all the way. "Serves him right!" the boy laughed, wrapping his arms over his stomach.

Hikari joined in the laughed as she watched Hook and this 'Smee' tried to row faster to get away from the crocodile. Serves him right indeed. She turned around and walked over towards Wendy, who smiled at her in return. The brunette summoned her rod away and crossed her hand behind her head.

"Why don't you guys sit back and relax while I fly this ship back to London?" Peter said as he wore Hook's hat and coat. He stood on the wooden railing before he flew behind the large wheel to steer the ship.

"Are you alright, Hikari?" Wendy asked.

Hikari dropped her hands and nodded her head reassuringly. "Yeah..." she smiled. She placed her hand on her neck. She could still remember the cold mental pressed against her throat. She shook the negative thoughts away to give Wendy her best grin.

The two girls turned to face Sora when he floated down towards them. Sora noticed the look on Hikari's face. Even though she was grinning at him, he could tell that she was hiding something behind her grin. He sighed before a bright idea came across his mind. He whispered something to the little pixie and she nodded happily. The little pixie flew around Hikari, sprinkling her with pixie dust.

"Huh? Whoa!" Hikari shouted in surprise when she suddenly began to float. She waved her arms and legs around as she began to float higher and higher. She looked up when someone grabbed her hands to stop her from flying to the atmosphere. "W-We're flying!" she said, looking down.

Sora laughed. "Yeah! We are!" he said, smiling when he saw how Hikari's face brightened up. "This is Tinkerbell, I believe you two haven't met yet?" he introduced.

Hikari grinned at the little pixie before turning to face her brother. "This is awesome!" she laughed as her brother guided her to glide across the sky with Tinkerbell beside them. "I'm sure with Tinkerbell we can defeat Maleficent!" she grinned, turning her head towards Tinkerbell, who gave a basful look at the compliment.

"Hikari..." Sora called out as they floated back down to the ship. His sister hummed in reply. He turned to face his sister as they both set foot on the wooden floor. "I want you to forget everything Riku said to you because everything he said is not true." he said, placing his hands on Hikari's shoulder.

Hikari looked down and nodded her head.

Wendy walked closer to them and nodded her head in agreement. "If it wasn't for your quick thinking, we would still be locked inside that room." she smiled, cheering the brunette up.

Hikari gave a short laugh. "Thanks..."

The three glanced over to their right when they came close to the face of a giant clock. Sora's eyes widened when he saw a keyhole right beside the center of the clock. He summoned his keyblade and raised it to point at the keyhole of the world. A ray of light was shot from the tip of his keyblade, locking the world. The light soon died down and he summoned his keyblade away.

They all stared at the moon glowing down at them.

"Come back to Neverland, okay? Next time we'll fly together. No Hook. No monsters. Just us soaring through the sky."

"Definitely."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Hollow Bastion?"

Sora echoed as he stared at his sister and then to Leon.

Hikari nodded. "Yeah... Riku will definitely take her there... It's kinda like their home base." she explained. After Neverland, they went back to Traverse Town to fix their Gummi ship. While they are there, they decided to visit Leon and discuss about their next move. The brunette remembered how Hollow Bastion looked and her heart beats faster at the thought of it. She had a feeling that it would be the place where Riku and them would face each other off. "We have to go over there." she said, turning to Sora.

Sora exchanged glances with Donald and Goofy before he took a step closer to his sister. "Hikari... I think you should stay here with Leon." he said.

"WHAT?!" Not a second later, Hikari was already bursting out in anger. "Why can't I come with you guys?!" she demanded.

"It's too dangerous! I don't want to see you getting hurt anymore!" Sora said in concern, remembering how Riku attacked his sister. He placed his hands on his sister's shoulders, making her look at him. "I know how much you wanted for us to travel together, but please listen to me this time..." he stared right into Hikari's eyes, trying to convinced her.

Hikari looked down and sighed. "I'm just... scared... Everyone that I held hands with...are gone... Mom, Riku, Kairi, Princess Jasmine, Snow White..." she raised her hand up, closing her fingers to a fist as she closed her eyes. "I don't want to lose you too." she said sadly at the thought of losing her brother.

"Hikari..." Donald and Goofy glanced at each other. "Sora, maybe she should come with us too." Goofy said, smiling a little.

Sora shook his head and placed his hand over Hikari's. "Well, don't be scared. I promise you that I'll come back with Kairi and Riku too. After all, we made that oath, right?" he smiled, making Hikari lift her chin up to look at him. "Come on... Have some faint in your big brother, alright?"

Hikari nodded her head, smiling a little. "Yeah... Sibling hug?" she spread her arms out widely.

Sora laughed. "Sibling hug." he pulled his sister closer, patting her back comfortingly. He pulled away and ruffled her hair. "We'll be back before you know it!" he grinned, giving a thumbs up.

"I know." Hikari nodded her head as she waved her hand goodbye, watching her brother, Donald and Goofy leave Traverse Town.

A few minutes after Sora, Donald and Goofy left Traverse Town, Leon let out a deep sigh, making the younger brunette looked st him with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm guessing you're going after them?" Leon asked, crossing his arms.

Hikari grinned, pulling out the Star Shard. "You know it!" she pumped her fists up.

Leon couldn't help but smirk at the enthusiasm. "Just come back here if it's too much for you to handle, we'll go after Maleficent together." he said.

Hikari nodded her head before walking a few steps away from Leon. She pointed the Star Shard to the sky, focusing her thoughts only on Hollow bastion.

The Star Shard glowed brightly before it took her across the sky.

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"AW! Gotta learn how to stick the landing!"

Hikari shouted as she rubbed her bottom. She stood up and glanced around, putting the Star Shard away into her pouch. She walked a few steps further before looking up at the castle in front of her.

"Dark... Foggy... Creepy... Same characteristics, but not Hollow Bastion." Hikari groaned, face palming when she went to the wrong world. She took out her Star Shard again to use it to go to Hollow Bastion and if she can't arrive at Hollow Bastion at her fifth try then she's going back to Traverse Town. She stopped when she heard a loud roar coming from the castle. "Whoa! What was that?! It sounded like a drowning moose mixed with a bear!" she stared at the elegant doors with wide eyes.

Hikari stared at the Star Shard before putting it away. Hollow Bastion will just have to wait. She just can't leave this world knowing that the people staying in this castle are being hunted by a crazy creature that sounded like a drowning moose bear mix. She quickly ran up the set of stairs to reach the door. She slammed the door open and her eyes immediately tried to adjust to the low light of the entrance hall. It was dark and cold inside the castle, but she quickly pushed all of the thoughts away as she followed the sounded of the beast.

She ran up the set of stairs and headed straight for the left wing of the castle. Her footsteps echoed in the spacious hallways. Not a minute later, just as she was about to turn to a corner, she came face to face with a beastly creature. Her eyes widened at the sight of the giant beast looming over her with a gaze full of anger. The beast roared and brought his claws down. The brunette quickly jumped away, dodged rolling to safety.

Hikari sat on the floor, her mouth wide open as she stared at the beast. "What the-?!" her eyes widened. Her eyes went from the beast to the thing he was holding in his hands. It was a Heartless. All of her fear were suddenly gone at the sight of the black creatures surrounding the beast. She quickly stood up, summoning her rod. "Fire!" she casted, aiming at the Heartless attacking the beast.

She swung her rod, hitting the Heartless that latched itself on the beast's back. "Thunder!" she raised her rod above her head and lightning strike the Heartless around them, clearing the hallways. She took a deep breath and turned to face the beast with a nervous smile. "Hey, you okay-," she backed away when the beast abruptly turned towards her, his purple cape following his move.

At that surprise movement, she dropped her rod and it was too late to grab it.

"Who are you?!" The beast demanded as Hikari fell to the floor.

"Whoa! Easy there! I'm not with the Heartless! Promise!" Hikari raised her hands up in surrender.

The beast growled before he lets out another powerful roar.

"Trespassers then!" the beast shouted and he raised his hand.

Hikari brought her hands up, shielding herself.

"Beast! Stop!"

The brunette turned her head towards the feminine voice, her eyes widening at the sight of a beautiful woman dressed in a yellow ballgown running towards them. She turned to face Beast and he immediately calms down. She let out the breath she was holding when the beast lowered his guard.

The woman saw Hikari and gave her a small smile. She gracefully took the rod on the floor and helped the girl up to her feet. "Are you alright? I saw how you took care of those monsters. Thank you for helping Beast." she thanked, giving the rod back to the user.

Hikari shook her head. "No problem, miss."

"Please, call me Belle."


	17. Chapter 17

A/N:

This is it guys! Only one or two chapters to go before the sequel comes out! I've decided to join COM and DAYS together ^^

Little Adventures has finally reached chapter 3! :D I'm so glad that you guys enjoyed reading it ^^

For those who don't know what 'Little Adventures' is, Little Adventures is the prequel of New Beginnings. But in manga version.

It is posted up on my DA, manga1357

I suggest you all read it in order to understand the sequel and this story better ^^

OrionGold: Hmmm maybe Sora Amamiya, Asami Shimoda or Miyuki Sawashiro? I never really thought about it much haha

Lulu9814: Aww thank you so much!

Guest: I'm glad that you enjoyed reading Little Adventures ^^. Hehehe we'll find that out in the sequel *wink wink*. Ah, thank you so much! And yeah, first reaction to seeing people fly haha. I did too! I love watching Peter Pan and jumping on couches and beds when I was a kid haha! And yeah she is xD

Special thanks to everyone who has reviewed, read, favorited and followed this story :D you guys are awesome!

Kingdom Hearts (C) Tetsuya Nomura, Square Enix

* * *

Chapter 17

"My name's Hikari." The brunette took her rod back from the woman and introduced herself with a small smile. If it wasn't for this woman, she would've been seriously hurt from Beast's claws. She cringed a little before turning to face the beast with a nervous look. She summoned away her rod and scratched the back of her neck sheepishly. "Uh umm... Sorry for barging into your castle. I just heard noises and decided to check it out." she apologized.

Beast scrunch up his nose, growling. "You've checked it out. Now, leave." he moved his hand in an abrupt motion, moving his arm out from his purple cape.

"Wha-HEY!" Hikari shouted in complaint when Beast reached his hand out and grabbed her by her hood, lifting her up from the floor as if she was an empty sack of potatoes. The brunette struggled, flailing her arms around and kicking her feet to make Beast let her hood go. "Lemme go! Lemme go! I can walk on my own, thank you very much!" she said, grabbing Beast's large wrist.

"Beast, stop!" Belle ran in front of Beast and spread her arms out widely, stopping Beast from going further. The older brunette frowned at him as she placed one hand over her chest and the other directed at Hikari. "She helped you defeated those monsters. Perhaps if you let her stay, she could help us get rid of them." she reasoned, giving a gentle smile.

Beast stared at Belle. "Fine, have it your way. But if I heard one trouble from this girl then it's off to the dungeon for the both of you!" he shouted as he released his grasp on Hikari's hood, making her fall on the floor with a loud thud and a loud 'AW' coming from her. The beast stared at Belle intensely before he turned around, making his way to the other end of the hall, his heavy footsteps echoing in the spacious halls.

Hikari cringed as she stood up, rubbing her sore bottom. Her frown deepened as she stared at Beast's back. As soon as he was out of earshot, she turned to face Belle. "Geez! What's his problem? I helped him out and he just tried to kick me out? What a guy!" she huffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

Belle gave Hikari a small smile. "Please forgive, Beast... He's not used to company." she said, apologizing for Beast.

Hikari huffed, crossing her hands behind her head. "I'll say..." she mumbled grumpily, her heart still held bitter feelings towards the owner of the castle. Well, anyone would considering that after helping him out, he just wants to either throw them out or put them in the dungeon. Some landlord he is. The brunette shook her head, decided to just ignore the grumpy landlord and focus on asking this polite lady instead. "Anyway... You said something about monsters, right?" she turned to the woman.

Belle nodded her head. "Yes, that's right." she turned around and walked towards the window, staring at the mist surrounding the castle. "You see... We were having a ball when they suddenly appeared and started attacking us." she explained as she folded her hands together, staring at them.

Hikari blinked and crossed her arms. "Now I get it..." she said, closing her head as she lowered her head a little, a frown on her lips.

Belle turned to face the young girl, her eyes widening slightly. "You know what caused those monsters to appear and attack us?" she asked, trying to confirm what the girl knows.

"Huh? What? No, no! I was referring to Beast! No wonder he's a big grump! Those Heartless just ruined your party!" Hikari opened her eyes, staring at Belle. Her arms were still crossed as she stared up at the ceiling, a frown on her lips. "I mean I would too if Heartless suddenly showed up and ruin my party..." she added, shaking her head.

Belle blinked and sighed softly.

"But I have... a few thoughts about why the Heartless are attacking..." Hikari trailed off, her eyes staring at the floor. She thought back about what Maleficent wanted. Seven maidens with pure hearts. She knew for sure that Princess Jasmine, Snow White and Cinderella were three of seven. And the Heartless appeared in certain worlds too. Her eyes glanced over to Belle, who gave her a confused look. _'...If I'm right... Then Belle might be one of the Seven Princesses of Heart!'_ she thought, balling her hands up as she gave Belle a determined look.

Belled walked closer to Hikari and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Then can you please help us take care of the monsters?" she asked hopefully.

"Don't worry I'll-," Hikari glanced over to her shoulder, staring at Belle's gloved hand before turning to stare the woman in her eyes. She wanted to help, but she didn't want to give false hopes. She knew that she can't help them completely because she isn't the keyblade's chosen one. Only the one with the Key could keep this world from falling into the Darkness. She can't just go to Sora and ask him to come with her to lock this world. She won't hear the end of it from him! "...do my best to help you guys." she grinned, giving a thumbs up.

Belle sighed in relief. "That's wonderful to hear." she replied, giving a smile.

"Ms. Belle! Ms. Belle!" A voice shouted in panic, making both Belle and Hikari turned to the source of the voice. Hikari glanced around, trying to look for the person who called the woman beside her. She kept on hearing clicking noises and the man calling Belle, but she can't see him. Finally, her eyes saw something moving in the dark hallways. Her eyes widened when she saw a candelabra jumping towards them. "What are you still doing out here? It is dangerous, Ms. Belle!" it said, a clock following behind.

"Those monsters are everywhere! You should return to your room, mademoiselle!" The clock agreed, looking up at the woman.

Belle frowned. "I can't just stay in my room knowing what's going on!" she said, defending herself. "We have Hikari on our side now! We can handle it!"

Hikari blinked. "Huh? Oh yeah, yeah." she nodded her head at Belle before she stared at the talking and walking candelabra and clock. "A talking candle and a clock... Huh..." she trailed off.

"I take it zat zis is your first time seeing a handsome guy like moi?" The candelabra posed, giving a flirty grin.

"Haha no, not really." Hikari said sarcastically. "I've seen a lot of crazy things... So I guess things like these are a daily dose for me." she laughed nervously, scratching the back of her neck.

The clock crossed his arm over his chest. "Are you sure that we can trust a child to help us get rid of these monsters, Ms. Belle? I mean she is no older than ten!" he said, looking at Hikari before turning to face Belle.

"I'm not a kid! I'm thirteen! Technically a teen!" Hikari placed her hands on her hips, giving a look at the clock. "And I am pretty capable! Look, I have a magic rod to prove it!" she summoned her rod to prove her point to the talking clock.

The clock stared at the rod and turn to Belle with a deadpan look. "Do you see my point?"

Belle shook her head. "Have some faith in Hikari, Cogsworth." she said as she crouched down to the clock's and candelabra's eye level. "I know she's young, but I believe that she is capable of helping us." she smiled.

"Thank you!" Hikari shouted, giving Belle a smile. She turned to face Cogsworth, giving the clock a smirk. "One person believes in me!"

Cogsworth sighed. "I guess it is worth a try to trust this child." he said, walking closer to Hikari. He offered his hand, making the brunette lower herself to his level. The two shook hands. "I am Cogsworth, the master's majordomo." he introduced.

"And I am Lumiere! It is a pleasure to meet you mademoiselle." Lumiere, the candelabra, introduced himself cheerfully.

"Hikari. Nice to meet you guys." The brunette grinned before standing up. She twirled the rod in her hand and tossed it up into the air once before she caught it and strike a pose. "Alright! Let's wipe the floor with the Heartless!" she shouted.

Cogsworth cleared his throat. "Please do refrain from using those creatures as mops to clean the floor. Master will not be happy to find his castle dirtied." he chided like what a mother would.

"You seriously can't take a joke..." Hikari sighed as she stood straight, shaking her head at the clock's sense of humor. "It's not like the castle is in a pretty state either..." she mumbled, referring to the ripped curtains and the dark hallways.

"Sacre bleu!" Lumiere exclaimed, jumping up in surprise.

Hikari jumped a little at Lumiere's exclaim of surprise. She stood protectively in front of Belle, Lumiere and Cogsworth, her rod held tightly in her hand. She frowned when she saw the Heartless began to rise from the floor. She looked down when a Shadow emerged from the floor beneath her foot. The brunette swung her foot at it, kicking it as far away as possible. In just less than a minute, the halls were already filled with Heartless.

"This is bad! This is bad! We have to run!" Cogsworth shouted in panic as he held his head, hiding behind Belle.

"I can't leave Hikari alone! She's just a child!" Belle said as Cogsworth kept on tugging at the hem of her dress, urging her to run.

"Then we'll run together!" Hikari shouted, taking Belle's hand. She held onto Belle's hand as they both ran away with Lumiere and Cogsworth right beside them from the mob of Heartless. One Heartless? Piece of cake. Ten Heartless? Okay, she can handle it. But a swarm? She rather hide and take them one by one, even if it takes longer. "Over here!" she said, pointing her rod at the right.

"Go!" Hikari ordered as she released her hold of Belle's hand. The brunette turned around and drew her rod back as far as she can. Belle, Cogsworth and Lumiere kept on running following the brunette's order. "Take this!" she threw her rod at the Heartless, casting Fire as well.

Her rod spun in a circle once, killing off the Heartless that were in its way before it came back spinning into the user's hand. She caught her rod and turned back around, continuing to run again with the other three. She caught up with them quickly, leaving the Heartless behind in the dust. The Heartless continued to chase them, but they were a little ahead of the Heartless because of the little attack Hikari did.

"Zat was a nice zrow!" Lumiere complimented as he appeared beside Hikari.

Hikari grinned. "Thanks! Now in here!" she opened one of the rooms in the halls and motioned her hand for everyone to come inside. After Belle, Lumiere and Cogsworth were inside, Hikari stepped inside the room and quickly shut the door, hoping the Heartless would just pass by. She pressed her ear against the door and listened closely to what was happening outside. After a few minutes of silence, the brunette sighed in relief. "I think we're safe for now..." she said, turning around.

Cogsworth's whole body shook as he marched his way towards the girl. "I knew we shouldn't have trusted you!" he glared, moving his hand in a scolding manner.

Hikari raised an eyebrow, placing her hands on her hips as she looked down. "Hey! I would like to see you try and handle a swarm of Heartless on your own too!" she huffed angrily, glaring at the clock.

Lumiere came in between the two, a smile on his face. "Mon ami! Let us put all this glaring aside! We are friends, oui?" he glanced over to Hikari and then to Cogsworth, both glared at each other one last time before throwing away their face from each other, making the candelabra sigh. "Mon ami, she is just a child! She can not handle those many monsters by herself." the candelabra said, wrapping his arm around Cogsworth.

Belle shook her head and approached the young girl and the clock, giving a small smile. "We appreciate you helping us escape, Hikari." she thanked, making Hikari stop frowning to return the smile.

"No problem! I'll take care of the rest, so don't you guys worry about it!" Hikari grinned and twirled the rod in her hand as she held the door's handle, ready to take on all of the Heartless for Belle and Lumiere.

Cogsworth snorted. "Oh please-!" he jumped in fright when there were noises coming from the dark corner of the room. The clock quickly ran to hide behind the magic user, his whole body shaking Hikari stood in a defensive stance, holding her rod tightly in front of her as she waited for the intruder to come out. She dropped her stance when the thing that came out from the shadows were the Heartless. "Oh... It's you..." Cogsworth moved away from behind the brunette, clearing his throat.

"Don't worry. No Heartless here." Hikari said sarcastically, summoning away her rod as she gave a look at Cogsworth. "Why is it that the ones who admit they don't need any help are the ones who needed help the most?" she asked, thinking back to the way how similar Grumpy and Cogsworth is in some way.

Cogsworth frowned at Hikari, but didn't answer.

"Mrs. Potts! Chip! You're safe!" Belle approached the teapot and the small teacup. The woman kneeled down, sitting on the carpeted floor as the jumping teacup jumped into her hands. She brought her teacup in her hands up to her face, taking a closer look at the teacup with a relieved smile on her lips. "What happened? Where did you two go before?" she asked, worry in her tone.

Mrs. Potts jumped over to Belle, standing in front of the woman. "After those monsters appeared, we hid in the kitchen. It was so frightening to see them run around like that in the castle. After awhile, we decided to go and look for you, but we heard footsteps so we hid in this room." she explained. Hikari, Cogsworth and Lumiere circled Belle, listening to Mrs. Potts' side of the story. "We peeked out the door and saw a young boy. He was with those monsters. We waited and then you all came to this room. I am glad that you all made it out." the teapot smiled.

Hikari's eyes were wide when Mrs. Potts finished her story.

"Yeah! And that boy has silver hair! Must have been a lot of stress, huh?" Chip added, jumping in Belle's palm.

Hikari turned her head to the small teacup in Belle's hands. _'Riku... No doubt that it's him.'_ she thought, looking at the floor. She lifted her hand up and her fingers touched the place where Riku pressed his keyblade against her neck. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Hey, are you okay?" A child-like voice made her open her eyes. Hikari kneeled down and her eyes stared at the teacup in Belle's hands. The little teacup was staring at her with a curious look. The brunette opened her hand and the teacup jumped from Belle's hands to her. "Come to think of it... I never seen you before! My name's Chip! And that's my mom!" he introduced.

"I'm Hikari." Hikari couldn't help but smile at the teacup.

"You look like you have a lot in mind, would you care for a cup of tea to make you relax?" Mrs. Potts offered, a motherly tone in her voice.

Hikari placed Chip back beside his mother, shaking her head. "No thanks... I was just thinking about how to get rid of those Heartless." she answered, declining Mrs. Potts generous offer.

A loud roar echoed in the castle, making every stop.

"Beast!" Belle shouted in concern as she stood up.

"Master!"

Hikari furrowed her eyebrows, a frown on her lips. _'Riku... What have you done now?'_ she summoned her rod and headed straight for the door, turning back to look at Belle and the small group. "You guys stay here while I go and check on Beast!" she said.

Belle placed her hand on Hikari's shoulder, stopping her from exiting the room. "I'll come with you."

Hikari was about to say 'no', but both Cogsworth and Lumiere beat her to it. "Mademoiselle! You mustn't! It is simply too dangerous for you!" Cogsworth said, running towards Belle.

"But-,"

"Was it not you who said to have faith in Hikari? I am sure she can help ze Master." Lumiere said, smiling up at Hikari and then to Belle.

Hikari nodded her head at Lumiere's words. "Don't worry, Belle. I'll definitely help Beast. You can count on me!" she grinned.

Belle sighed and nodded her head, giving up. "Alright... But please do be careful." she said, giving a concern look at Hikari.

"I will."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Hikari ran in the dark halls, making her way to the west wing of the castle. She stopped for a moment to inspect the two halls before deciding to keep on going straight. She really did try her best to remember what Cogsworth said, but the castle's halls were just too confusing and the Heartless kept on making her lose track! Everything looked basically the same. Red carpets. Broken vases. And pictures. Lots of scary oil painted canvases.

The brunette decided to just follow the noise, hoping that her instincts and hearing aren't wrong. She finally reached a hall that fits Cogsworth's description and headed straight for the room at the end of the hall. Her eyes widened when she reached the wide open doors. Her eyes darted from Beast and then to the silver haired boy, staring at his back.

"The Princess is here, isn't she?" Riku asked, still unaware of Hikari standing by the door.

Beast growled. "I will not let you take Belle away."

Riku snapped his fingers and a couple of Heartless appeared. "So be it," he said, watching the Heartless lunged forward at the tired beast. He was an easy target now that he's all tired out from fighting him and all the Heartless he summoned. His blue-green eyes widened when a familiar rod spun around, killing the two Heartless before they could lay a claw on Beast. He didn't bother to turn back as the rod went spun back to the wielder. "Hikari... It's kind of funny that you're always at the right time to interfere." he said.

Hikari caught her rod and frowned. "Is it wrong then? To come and rescue those in need?" she asked.

Riku finally turned around and he summoned his keyblade. "Oh stop trying to be the hero. We both know that you can't be one." he faced the younger girl, a smirk on his lips. Beast took that moment to attack. The large beast lunged forward, his claw drawn back as far as he can to hurt the silver-haired teen. The keyblade wielder swiftly turned around and swung his keyblade at Beast, knocking him back to the other side of the room.

"Beast!" Hikari shouted, glancing over to Beast before glaring at Riku. She ran towards Riku and swung her rod at him, to which he blocked with ease. Their weapons clashed and Hikari grunted when she once again have to use her strength to push Riku back.

"I find it annoying that you still tried to be a hero..." Riku sneered. Hikari managed to push Riku away and jumped back to a safe distance just when he swung his keyblade to hit her. Hikari stood a few feet away from him, lowering herself a little to a defensive stance. "You're always talking about saving someone, but in reality it's you who needs saving." he said.

Hikari glared at Riku. "Look who's talking! Don't you think that you've gone far enough? You're hurting people just so you can have more power!" she shouted.

"It's not just power... It's Darkness. With it, you can control the Heartless." Riku raised his keyblade, staring at it before his eyes averted to look at Hikari. "And with the keyblade... I'm more stronger than anyone."

The brunette furrowed her eyebrows. "You're letting it get into your head, Riku! Now that you have a keyblade, you're acting as if you're a Master at it or something!" she shouted. She placed her hand over her chest, staring at the floor before lifting her chip up. "Now I know why Sora has the original... because he doesn't have a big head like you!"

As soon as she said that, Riku charged at her, his keyblade drawn back. Hikari barely made it in time. She sidestepped away, tilting her head to avoid the keyblade. She ducked down to dodge Riku's kick and raised her rod above her red to block Riku's keyblade. Their weapons kept on clashing against each other, each of them not giving up on attacking and countering each other's attacks.

"Fire!" Hikari casted as she pointed her rod and Riku. She watched as Riku swiftly dodged the fire attack. He jumped up and Hikari raised her hand, casting Barrier around herself. Riku's keyblade hit the Barrier with a loud clang and Hikari's eyes widened at the second hit the Barrier took it shattered. She quickly, raised her rod, blocking Riku's next attack. "Blizzard!" she shouted and nothing came out.

Riku laughed. "What's the matter? Out of magic?" he loomed over Hikari as she tried to take an Ether out from the pouch. He swung his keyblade and knocked the rod right out of Hikari's hand. The brunette wasn't fast enough to use the Ether and cast Barrier. The silver-haired teen kicked the brunette across the room and she landed beside Beast, who tried to get back up to his feet. "This is why you should never depend on magic." he commented.

"S-Shut up..." Hikari grunted in pain as she pushed herself to a sitting position. She rubbed her stomach as she glared at Riku with pain and anger filled eyes. Her eyes widened when she suddenly saw a blur of yellow in front of her. She looked up and found the Princess of Heart standing before her. "B-Belle?!" she shouted in surprise.

"Belle!" Beast also shouted in surprise as he tried to stand up.

Belle spread her arms wide open, standing in front of Beast and Hikari protectively. "Enough. I won't let you hurt them anymore." she said bravely.

Riku raised an eyebrow. "So you're the princess..."

Belle placed her hand over her chest. "If what you want is me then I'll will come with you willingly." she said and before Beast or Hikari could complain and stop her, she walked closer to the silver-haired boy. "But you have to promise to never hurt them again." she continued.

"Belle! What are you saying!" Hikari shouted as she got up.

Riku stared at Hikari before he opened a portal behind him. "Everyone's trying to be the hero today... It makes me sick." he said before his cold eyes glanced over to Belle, silently telling the Princess to get inside the portal. Belle held her chip up high and entered the portal, Riku walking behind him. "Do me a favor and stay out of my way, Hikari." he said before the closed the portal.

"RIKU!" Hikari reached her hand out just as the portal closed as Beast pounced at the portal, trying to stop Riku, but it was all too late. She stared at her shaky hands with wide eyes and before she could even apologize to Beast, she was lifted up high from the floor by her jacket.

"You know where that insolent boy is going! Take me to him! NOW!" Beast roared angrily, shaking Hikari back and forth. The brunette didn't answer him and he growled. He released his hold of the brunette and let her fall to the floor. He turned around, his eyes glancing around the room, looking for a way. "Useless!" he screamed, flipping over a table.

Hikari placed her hand over her chest and she shakily stood up. "I... want to save Belle... Any everyone else too." she finally said, staring at Beast with her eyebrows furrowed down. Beast turned around to face the brunette, his teeth gritted, showing his sharp teeth. "I'm not allowed to take someone away from their world, but I think this is an exception." she reached her hand inside her pouch, taking out her Star Shard.

Hikari walked towards where her rod is and picked it up before walking towards Beast. She summoned away her rod and showed Beast her Star Shard. "I'm gonna need help. I can't take them all back alone." she said.

"Belle is the only one I have... She is my light!" Beast said, staring down at Hikari.

The brunette nodded and guided Beast to the balcony. She placed her hand on Beast's arm and pointed the Star Shard to the sky.

"Okay! Let's go!"

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"This is where Belle is?" Beast asked, glancing around at his surroundings. Both Beast and Hikari arrived at the Rising Falls in no time. It was a brief journey to Hollow Bastion and Hikari couldn't be more happier. The faster they get to Hollow Bastion, the better. "Where is she?"

Hikari glanced up to look at the castle. "I'm pretty sure Riku took her to one of the rooms in the castle. They didn't let me go around the castle so freely, so I don't exactly know which room." she explained, staring up at the floating rocks they have to jump. She looked over to Beast and her eyes widened when he was already gone from her side to jump over the floating steps. "HUH?! Wait for me!" she shouted as she followed after Beast.

"Argh!"

Hikari's eyes widened when she heard Beast's shout of pain. "Beast?!" as soon as she reached the level where Beast was, her eyes couldn't have gone wider. Riku stood there, his keyblade raised above Beast. The brunette summoned her rod and charged at Riku. "Get away from Beast!" she threatened.

Riku easily blocked her attack. "Didn't I tell you to get out of my way?!" he sidestepped away from Hikari's attack and forcefully took her rod from her hand as he kicked her towards Beast. He summoned away his keyblade, holding Hikari's rod instead. "So it was you who took him here." he stared at the blue rod before throwing it away over his shoulder.

"So what?" Hikari snapped.

"Why are you so persistent?" Riku asked.

Beast pushed himself up. "...bring back Belle... I believe I can bring her back from the likes of you." he growled before he fell back down to his knees.

Hikari kneeled beside Beast, staring at him worriedly before turning her head to glare at Riku.

"Hikari?!" said brunette turned to face the boy who called her. Her eyes widened when she saw her brother standing a few feet away from her, her rod strapped on his belt. His wide blue eyes were glued on his sister as his mouth was wide open. He quickly went over to his sister's side, Donald and Goofy beside him. Donald quickly cast Cura over Hikari and Beast, healing them from the wounds they received from their fight with Riku and the Heartless. "What are you doing here?!" he placed his hand over Hikari's rod strapped on his belt.

Riku turned to look at the brunet. "Sora... Just in time." he said before he threw something at him. The wooden sword landed in front of Sora's feet and the brunet stared at the sword confusedly before lifting his gaze up to look at his best friend. "What? Not going to use it? You better use it since it's going to be your new sword." he taunted.

Sora blinked confusedly. "Huh? What do you mean?" he asked. His eyes widened when he felt the keyblade in his hand behind pulled. He tried his best to keep the keyblade in his hands, but the keyblade disappeared in a bright light before it reappeared in Riku's hand. "What... What just happened?!" he shouted in disbelief.

"WAK!"

"Gwarsh!"

Riku smirked, holding up the Kingdom Key. "Isn't it obvious? I'm the keyblade's chosen one." he said, making everyone stare at him with wide eyes, especially Sora and Hikari. He lowered the keyblade as stared down at Sora. "You were just the delivery boy." he scoffed.

"Riku!" Hikari stood up, glaring at the silver-haired boy. She glanced over to her brother and she bit her lip at seeing him so down. "Give Sora back his keyblade!" she shouted.

The silver haired teen turned to look at Hikari. "Why should I when it belongs to me?" he said, turning around to go back to the castle.

"Wait-!" Hikari quickly made an attempt to chase after Riku, but stopped when she saw Donald walking pass by her. "Huh?! Donald?!"

Sora glanced up to look at his friend with saddened eyes.

"I'm sorry Sora... But it's the King's orders to follow the one with the key..." Donald apologized as he and Goofy left to follow Riku.

Both brunettes stared at Donald and Goofy in disbelief.

"Did they...just abandon us?" Hikari asked, her eyes still wide as she tried to process what just happened. First, Riku took the keyblade from Sora and now both Donald and Goofy choose him over Sora! The brunette turned to her brother and kneeled down in front of him, not sure what to say to her heartbroken brother. "Sora? You okay?" she asked softly.

Sora looked up and gave Hikari a small smile. "Yeah..." he said. He suddenly wrapped his arms around Hikari, almost making the younger of the two lose her balance. "I'm glad... I'm glad that you didn't listen to me..." he whispered as he leaned his forehead against her shoulder.

Hikari patted Sora's back. "I'm glad I didn't listen to you too."

"Thanks for being here with me."


	18. Chapter 18

A/N:

Ahhhhh! Only 1 chapter to go! I'm so excited :D

Special thanks to everyone who has read, reviewed, faved and followed this story :D

Gry20: Awww thank you so much! Don't worry I have a lot of things planned *wink wink*

Lulu9814: Awww thank you! And the next story will be posted as soon as New Beginnings is finished ^^

OrionGold: Okay, I admit, it was way cooler in the game haha. It's okay. Hmmm... Brittney Karbowski, Alexis Tipton? Idk really haha

Guest: Aww thank you! I love Mrs. Potts too! Her character is really fun to write! Me too! I always get upset at that part too!

Guest: Maybe... I do want their friendship to be fixed too...

DisneyFreak-Lover: yeah haha

Kingdom Hearts (c) Square Enix, Tetsuya Nomura

* * *

Chapter 18  
Promise

There was silence between them. The only noise that could be heard were the sound of the waterfalls.

Hikari never did let Sora go. She kept her arms around him, trying her best to comfort him. To be there for him when everyone wasn't. It wasn't just because of the Oath they promised years ago. They're brothers and sisters. She promised to always be there for him and to always protect him, even though it was supposed to be the other way around. Her blue eyes then glanced over to the wooden sword beside them. She stared at the piece of wood with frown on her lips.

" _You were just the delivery boy."_

The brunette didn't want to believe that her brother is _'just a delivery boy'_ like what Riku had said. After fighting with him, she has mixed feelings for her friend. Hatred and anger because he choose to side with Maleficent, leaving her and her brother. Concerned because she was worried that he might fall into the darkness and never came back. Even though he's a jerk to her and her friends, deep down he's still the big brother she knew. She just had to knock some senses into his big head, which she would be happy to.

"Where are you going?"

Hikari pulled away when she heard Sora spoke. She followed his gaze and saw Beast getting back up to his feet, stumbling a few times. She watched as Sora quickly went to Beast's side, stopping him from taking another step forward.

"Stop, you're hurt badly." Sora said in concern.

Beast glanced over to Sora. "I... came here with a reason and I'm not leaving until I find her." he said before he fall back down to his knees. He panted heavily, clutching his sore side. Donald did healed him with his magic, but he still felt sore where Riku's keyblade had hit him. His eyes moved from looking at Sora to Hikari, who was sitting a few feet away. "Isn't that why you came here too?" he asked, directing the question to both brunettes.

Hikari stared at Beast.

"I... I want to save Kairi too!" Sora said, his eyes lighting up in determination.

Hikari glanced over to Sora, a smile spreading on her face as she looked at her brother's expression. Just by looking at her brother's expression, her spirits went back up to maximum. She took the wooden sword from the ground and approached her brother. She placed a hand on his shoulder, making him look at her.

"I'll help." Hikari grinned, resting the wooden sword on her shoulder as she gave him a thumbs up. "I'll use this. You can use my rod until we get your keyblade back." she smiled.

Sora glanced over to look at Hikari's weapon. "Wait! You can't use that!" he shouted as he took out the rod from his belt. He handed the rod to Hikari and hold his other hand out, waiting for her to give him the wooden sword. "Here, I'll use the sword. You can use your magic rod. After all, you're good at using it than I am." he continued, scratching the back of his head with a sheepish grin.

Hikari laughed. "I guess." They both switched weapons before turning to face Beast. The brunette walked closer to Beast and raised her rod, casting cure over him to make him better. "Beast, this is Sora, my brother. Sora, this is Beast. I just thought that before working together, we should know each other's name." she said, introducing the two to each other.

Beast nodded. "Now that introductions are over, let's go." he said, walking ahead of the two brunettes.

Sora and Hikari glanced over at each other and nodded, following after Beast.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Fire!" Hikari shouted, casting Fire over the Heartless.

They were only at the castle's gates and the place was already crawling with many Heartless. She swung her rod, taking out the Heartless one by one. She took a brief moment to stop and look over to where Sora was at. Every minute or so, she would check on her brother, checking to see if he needs any healing or help dealing with the Heartless. Sora is very much capable of handling these kind of things on his own, but she can't help but worry because his weapon is only a wooden sword.

"Focus!" Beast growled as he slashed the Heartless beside Hikari. The brunette's eyes widened, turning to look at where the Heartless had once been. She shook all of the thoughts away and tried to focus back on fighting the Heartless around them. She held her rod tightly as she stood back to back with Beast. "Your brother is fine. Try focusing on yourself!" he barked out and lunged forward, killing the Heartless in each swing of his claws.

"Right!" Hikari nodded her head and followed after Beast, swinging her rod at the Heartless Beast missed.

The three kept on running towards the large doors. The closer they are to the door, more Heartless kept on appearing to block their way. She and Beast had been separated from Sora when the Heartless suddenly appeared between them. Sora had already reached the large doors and was trying his best to hold back the Heartless long enough for Beast and Hikari to arrive. Beast clawed the Shadows around him, but he missed the one that came to attack from above. Hikari quickly jumped on Beast's back, using his back as leverage to kill the Heartless. She hit the Heartless, knocking it away and landed on the ground with a soft thud.

"Freeze!" Hikari casted Blizzard over the Heartless and threw her rod at it, killing it off. She caught her spinning rod and gave a small smile at Beast. He nodded in return before the two meet up with Sora by the door. Beast swung his claws at the Heartless surrounding Sora in one swoop, making the brunet stare at him in awe. "You okay, Sora?" Hikari asked worriedly, appearing by her brother's side.

Sora nodded his head. "Yeah. Don't worry about me." he replied.

Hikari also nodded in return before she turned her head to face the large door. She took a few steps closer and strapped her rod on her belt before placing her hands on the surface of the door. She tried pushing the door open, but it won't budged. She grunted as she tried pushing it with her shoulder, but it still won't open.

"Ugh! It won't budge! It opened before!" Hikari grunted out as she pushed with all her might.

Sora crossed his arms. "Well... Maybe that's when you were still with them, you're their enemy now." he said, staring at his sister. "I doubt that it will open that easy..."

Hikari slipped and fell face first to the floor. "...true." she mumbled as she pushed herself up, dusting the dirt off her clothes.

"There must be another way." Beast said, looking around.

Sora lifted his wooden sword up, staring at it sadly. "If only... I still have my keyblade... Maybe I can open this door with it." he sighed as he lowered his wooden sword.

"Sora..." Hikari stared at Sora with her eyebrows furrowed down, a frown on her lips. She wanted to help Sora get his keyblade back from Riku, but she can't even wield it let along touch it without it disappearing back. The only way she can help Sora get his keyblade back is finding a way into the castle and find Riku. She placed her hand on her chin as she tried to think of a way to get inside the castle. Her blue eyes glanced left and right and she spotted something that caught her attention. "Over here!" she shouted as she ran towards the object that caught her attention.

Sora and Beast glanced over to each other and followed the younger brunette. The two stopped right behind the brunette, watching her kneel down before a large square shaped stone. Sora peered over Hikari's shoulder, trying to look at what she was trying to do with the square stone.

"What is it? Did you find a way in?" Sora asked curiously, watching his sister as she tried to lift up the stone.

"Yeah!" Hikari grunted as she tried to move the stone aside. "There's a waterway beneath the castle. When I was still with Riku, I somehow find my way to the waterways while exploring the castle and got lost. He found me two hours later in one of the halls and guided me back to castle. We can get in through here!" she explained and lost her grip on the stone cover and fall on her bottom.

"It's too heavy!" Hikari complained.

Sora kneeled beside Hikari, placing his hand on her shoulder. "We can lift it together-!"

"Step aside." Beast said, interrupting Sora. The two brunette watched as Beast came closer to the stone cover. He bends down and easily lifted the heavy cover up with both his hands, making the siblings stare wide eyed at him. He threw the stone cover to his right with a battle cry and the stone cover his the Heartless that suddenly appeared to attack them. "Let's go." he said, glancing over to the brunettes before he jumped into the sewer.

"Wow..." Both Sora and Hikari manage to say.

The two peered down to the inky darkness of the sewer. They glanced at each other and nodded. Hikari jumped in first before Sora. It was a long drop to the bottom, but luckily they both landed in the waters. They landed on the bottom with a big splash. The two swam back up to the surface, trying to look for Beast in the darkness, but it was impossible. They both yelped in surprise when they felt something grab them by their hood and lifted them up.

"Beast!" Even in the darkness, they could still make out a shape.

Beast placed both teens to the ground beside the waters. "Do you know where we have to go?" he asked, turning his head to face Hikari.

"Hold on a sec." The brunette squeezed the excess water out of her hair and took out her rod, casting magic over it so it would give them light. The head of her rod glowed brightly, illuminating the spot around them. She moved her rod around, pointing it to a few places and pointed her rod to the opposite direction. "I think this way leads to the waterways." she said.

Sora nodded his head. "Okay! Lead the way, sis!" he grinned.

Hikari grinned back before walking ahead, leading both Sora and Beast to the waterways. The brunette led them through the underground passage and to the waterway. She climbed up the ladder and helped her brother up before turning around to face the familiar place. Her eyes looked around and she turned back to face Sora and Beast, a smile on her face.

"Yup! This is it! This is the waterways." Hikari confirmed.

"Great! Now how do we get to the castle from here?" Sora asked, grinning.

Hikari glanced around and took a few steps forward. "I think it's through there." she said, pointing her finger at the pitch black path. She walked first and was suddenly with iron bars blocking their path. "Huh? I don't remember iron bars anywhere in the waterways?..." she said, taking a few steps back to inspect the bars.

"Are you sure you know where you're going?" Sora raised his eyebrows, staring at her sister questioningly.

"Probably?" Hikari answered with an unsure tone. "Everything looks the same here, so it's easy to forget, okay? But at least I got us to the waterways, right?" she defended, puffing her cheeks out childishly.

Sora sighed, but agreed nonetheless. "So what do we do now?"

"We find our way up." Beast answered and without warning he suddenly rammed his shoulder against the iron bars, completely destroying it. Both Sora and Hikari cringed at the loud sound, but they both followed Beast as he continued to destroy walls and iron bars that were blocking their path. He rammed his shoulder into one last wall before his eyes spotted stairs. "Is this it?" he asked, turning to face the brunette.

Hikari blinked and squinted her eyes to look at the stairs better. Her eyes trailed up the set of stairs to the door at the end. "Yeah! This is it!" she exclaimed.

"What are we waiting for? Let's go!" Sora said as he ran first to the stairs, followed by Beast and then Hikari. He pushed open the door slowly and peeked outside. Clarifying that there were no Heartless around, he pushed the door open fully and stepped out. They continued on walking as Hikari guided them through the halls and to the entrance hall. Sora stopped, making both Hikari and Beast to stop too. "Where do you think Riku and the others are?" he asked.

"How about we keep going up?" Hikari suggested. "The highest floor is always where the bad guys are hiding, right?"

"Fine by me."

Beast glanced around, his eyes narrowing. "Be on your guard." he suddenly said, surprising the two brunettes. "They're close, I can feel it... Are you ready to face them?" he asked.

"You bet!" Hikari raised her rod as Sora nodded his head.

Sora and Hikari continued to walk forward when Beast suddenly stopped.

"Belle?!" Beast turned to look around. His eyes widened when he saw the young woman he cared and loved. His face brightly at the sight of the woman. He reached his hand out, taking a few steps closer. He stopped when Belle turned to a one of those creatures. "Noo!" he let out a loud roar and ran after the Heartless, the doors closing behind him.

"Beast?!" Sora and Hikari shouted in unison as they turned to look back, but it was already too late. Beast had gone through the door and it was shut tightly. "Where's he going?" Hikari asked Sora, who shrugged in reply.

"Quit while you can."

Sora and Hikari turned around to face the voice. They both frown when they saw their silver haired friend with both Donald and Goofy behind him. Hikari's eyes glanced over from Riku to the keyblade in his hand. She lowered herself to a fighting stance, her rod held tightly to protect both her and Sora from any attacks Riku will throw at them.

"No! Not without Kairi we're not!" Sora shouted, his eyebrows furrowed down.

"Without a weapon, the darkness will destroy you." Riku replied, moving the keyblade.

Sora shook his head. "No. You're wrong Riku." he began and he placed his hand over his heart. "The darkness may destroy my body, but it can't touch my heart. My heart will stay with my friends. It'll never die!" he continued.

Riku laughed. "Really? Well, we'll just see about that!" he raised his hand.

"You have to go through me first!" Hikari shouted as she stood in front of him, her rod raised in defense.

Riku smirked. "Then both of should disappear!" he said and a dark energy ball was shot out from his hand, the attack heading straight for the brunette.

Sora's eyes widened when he saw his sister stood in front of him. "No!" he quickly pulled Hikari back and wrapped his arms around her, shielding her instead from Riku's attack. The two kneeled down to the floor as they both waited for the energy ball to hit them, but it never did. Sora opened his eyes and his eyes widened when he saw someone standing in front of them. "Goofy?" he asked.

Goofy glanced back at the brunettes, giving them a smile. "Sora and Hikari ain't gonna go anywhere!"

The silver haired teen frowned. "So you're going to betray your king?"

Goofy shook his head. "Not on your life!" he shouted at him. "But I'm not gonna betray Sora or Hikari either, cause they both have become one of my best buddies." he glanced back at Sora and Hikari, smiling at them.

"Goofy..." Sora grinned as he stood up, helping her sister up as well.

The royal guard turned to look at his friend who was by Riku's side. "See you later, Donald! Could you tell the king I'm really sorry?"

Donald blinked and shook his head. "Hold on a minute! We'll tell him together!" he shouted before running towards the other side, away from Riku. He glanced up to face Sora, a smile on his face. "Well you know what they say... All for one and one for all!"

Sora glanced over to Donald and then to Goofy. "You guys... Thanks." he smiled sincerely.

Riku snorted at the reunion. "You've got your friends back, but they can't help you. How will you fight without a weapon? That toy sword of yours? It's no match against this keyblade." he said, raising the Kingdom Key.

Sora stepped forward. "I know now that I don't need the keyblade. I got a better weapon..." he said and placed his hand over his chest. "My heart!"

The silver haired teen snorted. "Your heart? Don't make me laugh... What good will that weak little heart of yours can do?"

Sora smiled in determination. "Although my heart may be weak, it's not alone. It's grown with each new experience and it found a home with all the friends I've made. I've become part of their heart just as they became a part of mine. And if they think of me now and then... If they don't forget me... Then our hearts will be one." he smiled down at his hands, staring at the wooden sword. He glanced over to Donald, Goofy and then to Hikari, who all nodded at him. They all stood behind beside him.

"I don't need a weapon. My friends are my power!"

"Pathetic-! What?!" Riku exclaimed in surprise when the keyblade in his hand glowed brightly and disappeared, reappearing in Sora's hands. He clicked his tongue in annoyance before he summoned his own keyblade, raising it above his head. "Doesn't matter! I can still beat you-! Argh!" he shouted in pain as he collapsed to the floor, clutching his heart.

"Riku!" Both Sora and Hikari shouted when they both saw the silver haired teen fall.

Riku glanced up, staring into Sora's and Hikari's suddenly worried looks. He shakily stood up and ran of to the opposite direction without another word.

"Riku! Stop!" Hikari shouted as she ran forward, following after the silver-haired teen. Before Sora could even follow his sister, he was stopped by a large Heartless, separating them both. Hikari turned to look back, staring at the large Heartless' back. "Sora! Donald! Goofy!" she stood in a fighting stance, ready to attack the Heartless.

"No! Don't worry about us! Keep going after Riku! Something's wrong and I know it!" Sora shouted as he face the large Heartless.

Donald and Goofy nodded their head in agreement. "Yeah! We'll take care of things over here!" Donald raised his rod.

"We'll catch up with you later." Goofy added.

Hikari stared at them before nodding her head. She turned around, running into the hall Riku had run off to.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Riku panted as he stopped for a moment. He placed his hand on the wall for support as his other hand kept on clutching his shirt, trying to ease out the throbbing pain. It was strange. He suddenly felt pain in his heart when he shouldn't.

"Riku!" he turned around when he heard his name being called. He straightened his posture, a smirk on his face. Hikari had come running after him, a worried look across her face. It's funny to see her worried. After all he had done to her, she was angry at him, but now? She was worried for him. "Riku... What happened? Are you okay?" she asked.

"What? So you're worried about me now? You're not mad?" Riku snorted.

Hikari blinked. "Of course I'm mad at you! I want to whack that big head of yours! But..." she stopped, staring at Riku's pale face. Sweat poured down his forehead and he was breathing heavily. "...you're still my friend... Is it wrong to worry for a friend?"

Riku laughed before he went back down to his knees, clutching his shirt.

The brunette quickly moved to Riku's side, raising her rod to cast cure.

"It feels as if I'm about to be flattened!" Riku panted out. Just as Hikari was about to cast cure, Riku quickly summoned his keyblade, stopping her from casting any spell. He swung his keyblade at her and she quickly blocked it with her rod. "I don't need your help!" The silver haired teen quickly stood up and ran off into the darkness of the halls once more, leaving the brunette alone.

"Huh? Wait. What? Riku!" Hikari reached her hand out, but it was too late. Her blue eye stared at the hall where Riku ran off to. " _'It feels as if I'm about to be flattened.'_..." she repeated, a worried look on her face.

Hikari shook her head and stood back up, determined to find Riku. She came to a corner, glancing left and right to pick which way she should head. She turned to the right and kept on running, following her instincts. She panted when she kept on running, but didn't find Riku at all. She stopped for a brief moment, trying to catch her breath as she reached a large room.

The brunette wiped the sweat off her forehead. "Riku! Where are you!" she shouted, cupping her mouth. She had enough running for one day. She just hoped that Riku would be the one who showed up and not the Heartless after hearing her shout. She turned around abruptly when she felt something behind her. The atmosphere was heavy and suffocating, she didn't like this kind of feeling. "Riku?" she asked, staring at the hooded figure. "Who are you?"

The hooded figure, a man by the looks of it, didn't answer immediately. "It's no use calling for someone who has given into the darkness." he said.

Hikari raised an eyebrow. "What? No way! I know he acted like a jerk, but there's no way that Riku would just easily gave in!" she glared at the man, holding her rod tightly.

The hooded figure ignored her and walked forward. Hikari lowered herself to a fighting stance, ready to fight the man, but he walked pass her. Confused, Hikari straightened her posture and turned around to look at the man's back.

"Why don't you see for yourself?" the man spoke, directing his hand to the left hall.

Hikari glanced over to the left and when her eyes went back to look at the man, he had summoned a dark portal, stepping into the portal without looking back at her. She tried to chase after the man, but the portal closed before she could even reach him. The brunette turned to the left, staring at the hall with a frown. She gathered all of her courage and went to the left hallway just like what the man told her to do.

Her eyes widened when she saw Sora, Donald and Goofy fighting Maleficent, but when she reached the room, Maleficent was already tired out.

"Sora! Donald! Goofy!" Hikari shouted, getting Sora, Donald and Goofy's attention. She ran towards them, a relieved look on her face. She exchanged smiled with them before her attention turned to the Mistress of Evil.

"Fools! You cannot defeat me! I am the Mistress of Evil!" Maleficent shouted as she raised her hands above her head, lifting her staff up.

Sora furrowed his eyebrows. "No! You're wrong! It's over Maleficent!"

"Yes, that's right." Sora, Hikari, Donald and Goofy jumped upon hearing the dark voice. They all glanced around, trying to find the voice. Their eyes went over to the dark portal that appeared beside Maleficent. They lowered themselves to a fighting stance, ready to take on the new enemy. "It's over." the figure stepped out of the portal, reviling himself.

"Riku?!" Both Sora and Hikari shouted when they saw the mysterious person stepped out from the portal. It was indeed Riku, but there was something different about him. His face didn't change, but his looks and voice did. He no longer wore his usual yellow and blue outfit. It was replaced by a more darker outfit with a Heartless emblem on his chest. "No... You're not Riku! What did you do to Riku?!" Sora yelled, glaring at him.

Riku smirked. "Can't recognize your own friend?" he asked, his voice doubled over with a much heavier voice. He stood beside Maleficent who suddenly looked confident when Riku joined her side.

"You cannot stop us-!" Maleficent gasped when a keyblade suddenly struck her heart.

"Who said anything about us?" Riku asked as he watched Maleficent stepped back. "You are nothing but a pawn to me." he continued, his smirk widening.

Hikari stared wide eyed at the scene. She covered her mouth with her hand, staring in horror as Maleficent began to disappear. She took a few steps back as Sora stood in front of her, blocking her view.

"Wait!" Sora stepped forward, his eyes following when Riku had jumped off to. He turned to look back at Hikari, Donald and Goofy. He placed his hand on Hikari's shoulder reassuringly and she nodded her head. They all ran up the set of stairs, stopping at the second level to look at the sleeping Princesses in the pods.

Hikari kept on staring at the familiar faces inside the pods. Alice, Belle, Jasmine and Snow White, along with two other women she never seen. She felt a tug at her hand. Sora pulled her sister away, trying to make her stop looking at the sleeping Princesses. He knew that it was too much for her to look at her sleeping friends.

Upon reached the third level, their eyes widened when they saw a familiar redhead laying on the floor.

"Kairi!" Sora and Hikari shouted as they both ran to the redhead's side, not noticing that Goofy had been blocked off. Sora shook Kairi's shoulders, trying to wake her up. "Kairi! Kairi! Please wake up!"

"Sora..." Hikari said as she stared at Sora with a sad look.

"It's no use. The girl has lost her heart." Riku said, making everyone turn to face him. He sat on top of the large glowing device that was shaped like the Heartless' emblem.

Sora frowned. "What?" he gently placed Kairi down, turning to face Riku.

"The keyhole cannot be completed so long as the last Princess of Heart still sleeps." Riku continued as he jumped off, slowly landing on the floor.

"Princess? Wait... Kairi's a princess?!" Sora glanced back at Kairi with wide eyes. He turned his head to Hikari who just looked as surprised as he is.

"Yes, and without her power, the keyhole will remain incomplete. It is time for her to be awaken."

"You're definitely not Riku! What did you do to him?! Give him his heart back!" Sora shouted, gripping on his keyblade tighter.

"But first, you must give the princess her heart back!" Riku raised his keyblade and pointed it directly at Sora. The brunet suddenly felt a sharp tug on his heart, making him fall to his knees, dropping his keyblade to the floor.

"Sora!" Both Donald and Hikari shouted as they both went to his sides.

"Don't you see? The princess' heart is responding. It has been there all along..." Riku walked down the set of stairs, taking his time as he watched Sora cringed in pain. "Kairi's heart rests within you!" he said, pointing his finger at him.

"Kairi... Kairi's heart is inside mine?" Sora huffed out, placing a hand over his heart.

Hikari glared at the silver-haired teen. "Just who do you think you are?! You can't just take over other people's body!" she shouted, standing up.

Riku smirked, raising his hand up. "It is I, Ansem, the seeker of darkness." he introduced, walking closer to where Sora is.

"Let's go, Hikari!" Donald summoned his rod and Hikari nodded her head. The two ran towards Riku-Ansem, their rod raised to hit the man. Donald jumped at the man and without breaking a sweat, Riku-Ansem lifted his hand and swatted Donald away to the other side, making Hikari stop.

"Donald!" Hikari turned to look at where Donald had landed and saw that Donald was trying his best to get through an invincible wall. She turned her head to glare at Riku-Ansem. "You're going to have to go through me! I'm not letting you near Sora or Kairi!" she shouted as she lunged forward.

Riku-Ansem easily blocked her attack with his keyblade. "A rod against a keyblade? Surely you are joking." he mocked as he pushed her back. Hikari swung her rod at his head, but he quickly grabbed hold of her wrist, easily lifting her off the floor. "A simple weapon like yours cannot defeat the keyblade." he said and tossed the brunette away to the side.

"Hikari!" Sora turned his head to look at his sister, but he turned to look at the floor again when he felt another sharp tug to his heart.

Riku-Ansem stood before Sora, his keyblade pointing at him. "So I shall release your heart, princess. Complete the keyhole with your power!" he said, staring down at the brunet with a smirk. "Open the door, lead me to everlasting darkness!" he raised his keyblade high above his head, ready to strike down.

' _Sora!'_

Sora quickly raised his head up just in time to block the attack. "Forget it!" he huffed out as he slowly stood up, pushing Riku-Ansem away. "There's no way you're taking Kairi's heart!" he glared at the silver-haired teen.

The brunet lowered himself to a fighting stance. "Hikari! Get Kairi out of here!" he said, glancing over his shoulder.

Hikari quickly went back up to her feet and nodded her head. She ran towards Kairi and gently picked the redhead up, carrying her on her back. She stared at Sora's back before moving towards where Donald had been thrown off to.

"You are not getting away that easily!" Riku-Ansem said, turning to face Hikari. He threw his keyblade at the girl.

"Your opponent is me!" Sora deflect the keyblade, standing in front of his sister as he gave her time to ran away.

"Very well!"

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Sora panted heavily.

It wasn't an easy fighting against Riku-Ansem, especially without his friends. But he managed to defeat him anyway. He watched as Riku-Ansem drop the keyblade to unlock people's hearts and disappeared into a portal.

The brunet straightened his posture as stared at the spot where Riku-Ansem had once stood.

"Sora!" said boy turned his head to face his friends. "You did it Sora!" Donald quacked as he embraced the boy in a hug along with Goofy.

Sora laughed, returning the hug. "Yeah..." he grinned and lifted his head to look at Hikari who grinned at him. He watched as Hikari gently placed Kairi down before walking towards him. "I'm okay! Don't worry!" he grinned sheepishly.

"I know." Hikari laughed.

"Sora, the keyhole!" Goofy said, pointing his finger at the machine behind them. The four walked up the set of stairs, stopping right in front of the machine. Sora raised his keyblade up, pointing it at the keyhole. The brunet lowered his keyblade when it didn't shine brightly like it's supposed to. "Maybe the keyhole's not complete yet." the royal guard mumbled.

Sora nodded his head. "Ansem did said that to complete the keyhole they need Kairi's heart." he mumbled, placing his hand over his chest. He looked down to his keyblade before turning around. His blue eyes kept on staring at the keyblade left on the floor. "A keyblade that unlocks people's hearts... I wonder..." he walked down the stairs, his sister following after him.

"Sora?" Hikari called out as she stopped right at the bottom of the stairs, staring at her brother confusedly as he kept on walking towards the keyblade. She watched as Sora picked up the red keyblade from the floor. All of her smile disappeared as she stared at Sora. "Sora... What are you doing?" she took a step forward.

She knew what her brother was thinking and she didn't like it one bit.

"Haha... Sora... Don't joke around..." Hikari gave a small laugh, hoping that her brother was just fooling around.

Sora raised the Key to people's heart with his left hand as he held the Kingdom Key in his other hand. He glanced over to Hikari and tossed the Kingdom Key to her, who caught it by the shaft.

Sora smiled at Hikari who in return stare at him in horror.

"Sora-!"

Hikari reached her hand out to her brother as she watched him point the keyblade's blade to his heart.

Everything seemed to go into slow motion when Sora stabbed his own heart.

As soon as the keyblade released itself from Sora's heart, it glowed brightly, dividing itself into six glowing orbs. The orbs flew down, leaving a single orb from Sora's heart to go into Kairi. As the heart entered Kairi, the redhead opened her eyes, pushing herself up. Kairi's eyes widened upon seeing Sora slowly falling backward. She quickly ran towards the brunete, her arms opened wide.

Hikari ran towards her brother, moving her hand behind his back to catch him from falling. But as soon as his back touched her arm, he disappeared into million pieces of light, floating up to the sky.

"Sora?" Kairi stared at floating lights.

"Come back Sora!" Donald yelled, shouting at the lights.

Hikari fell to her knees, the Kingdom Key gripped tightly in her hands.

"Is Sora...? No! I won't let him go!" Kairi shouted as she glanced around. She really didn't want to believe that Sora is really gone. She turned to face Hikari, who sat on the floor with Goofy right beside her as he tried to comfort the young girl. "Hikari! You have to believe! You have to believe that Sora is still with us! I know that he's still with us!" The redhead said as she kneeled down in front of the brunette, her hands on the brunette's shoulder.

"S...So...ra..." Hikari didn't pay attention to Kairi's words as her ears went deaf the moment Sora disappeared. Her hands shook as her eyes began to water. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she was still in shock. She lowered her head down, letting the tears fell from her cheeks to the floor. "..." her mouth was opened, but not a single word came out.

"Hikari..." Both Donald and Goofy stared at the brunette. Out of all of them, Hikari had taken Sora's sacrifice the worse.

Kairi wrapped her arms around the brunette, letting the younger girl cry on her shoulder. "Hikari... It's alright... It's alright..." she whispered, patting Hikari's back to at least calm her down.

"So you have finally awaken Princess..." Kairi turned her head to face the deep voice. Her eyes widened she she saw a tall man with long silver hair walking towards them. She wrapped her arms around Hikari tighter as she glared at him. She knew from her heart that this man is not on their side. "But you have served your purpose. You are no longer needed." the man continued.

"Who do you think you are?!" Kairi stood up, glaring at the man.

The man only smirked as he kept on walking closer.

Donald and Goofy raised their weapons. "Not a step closer!" Donald quacked. "Stand back, Kairi, Hikari! We'll handle Ansem!" Goofy continued.

"Fools... Do you think you can stop me?" Ansem gave an amused smirk.

Both Donald and Goofy stood their ground as Kairi glared at the man. The redhead knew that she doesn't stand a chance against a man as powerful as him, but she won't let this man hurt Hikari! Both Sora and Hikari had protected her, it's time for her to protect them!

"Give... Sora back..."

Kairi turned around to face Hikari. "Hikari?" she blinked.

"Give Sora back!" Hikari repeated, this time louder. She lifted her chin up, showing her tear stained cheeks and glaring blue eyes. She grabbed Sora's keyblade by the handle and ran towards Ansem, ignoring Donald, Goofy and Kairi's shouts for her to stop. She swung the keyblade at the man and he easily avoided her attacks. "Give him back!" she kept on shouting.

Ansem laughed. "Such a foolish little girl. Your brother is no longer here." he said as he kept on dodging Hikari's violent swings. "But for someone who did not inherited the keyblade's power, the negative emotions gives you that power to wield it!" he said with an amused look.

Hikari glared at the long-haired man. She positioned the keyblade in front of her when Ansem raised his hand, shooting a dark energy ball at her. It send her back to where Kairi, Donald and Goofy stood. The brunette landed on the floor, dropping the keyblade as it landed beside her with a clang.

"Hikari!" Kairi shouted in worry as she kneeled beside the younger girl.

Ansem stared down at the small group, a smirk on his face. He took a few steps forward before he abruptly stopped, his hands shaking as he stared at them. "I...Impossible!" he shouted as something began to reform in a brightly in front of him.

" _No! I won't let you use me like this!"_ an image of Riku appeared in front of him, trying to stop Ansem from coming any closer to Kairi or Hikari. He turned his head to Kairi. _"Go! The Heartless are coming! You have to get out of here! Get Hikari away from here!"_ he shouted.

Kairi nodded and helped Hikari up. She held Hikari's hand tightly as she dragged her away, Donald and Goofy following right behind them. She could feel that Hikari was trying to break free from her grasps, but she won't let her. She knew how bad Hikari wanted to make that man pay for what he did to Sora, but she can't let her fight him in this kind of state.

"But what about the keyhole?" Goofy asked as they kept on running.

"We need to worry about ourselves first!" Donald replied as they reached the castle's entrance hall. The four stopped when a Heartless appeared out of nowhere, blocking their path. "Wak! Confounded Heartless!" he exclaimed in surprised, summoning his rod into hand.

Goofy held his shield. "Stay behind us, Kairi! Hikari!" he said standing in front of the two girls.

Hikari held the Kingdom Key tightly, glaring at the Heartless.

Kairi stared at the Heartless, tilting her head a little. "...Sora?" she said as she walked closer to the Heartless. Donald, Goofy and Hikari stared at the redhead with wide eyes before turning to look at the Heartless. She kneeled in front of the Heartless, slowly reaching her hand out to touch the Heartless' head. "Is it really you? Are you really Sora?"

Hikari stared at the Heartless, lowering the keyblade.

"Sora!" Kairi exclaimed, wrapping her arms around the Heartless.

The two were suddenly covered in a bright light, making Hikari, Donald and Goofy shielded their eyes.

Hikari rubbed her eyes as the bright light slowly died down. She lifted her head up to look at Kairi and her blue eyes widened. Kairi was no longer alone. Instead, in the Heartless' place, stood Sora, her brother.

"Sora!" Hikari shouted, a smile spreading across her lips.

Kairi opened her eyes when she heard Sora's name being called. She looked up and her eyes widened. "Sora! You came back!" she smiled.

Sora wrapped his arms around Kairi, smiling. "Kairi... Thank you..." he thanked before turning to face Hikari. He pulled away from the hug, giving Hikari a sheepish grin. He walked closer to his sister, scratching the back of his neck. "Hey um... Hikari I'm..." he stopped when he felt a sharp pain to his shoulder. "AW! What was that for?!" he complained, glaring at her.

"Idiot! Idiot! You're a big idiot!" Hikari pounded her fist on Sora's chest as her other hand held the Kingdom Key tightly. She hung her head low as tears streamed down her cheeks. She didn't know why she was crying. She should have felt happy that her brother is alright, so why was she crying? "You're stupid, you know that?" she hiccuped.

Sora smiled, pulling his sister in for a hug. He run his fingers through her hair and patted her back to comfort her. "Sorry for making you worry..." he apologized.

"I thought you were really gone..." Hikari returned the hug.

Sora pulled away and held both of Hikari's cheeks, wiping her tears away with his thumb. "Well, I'm here now! So there's no need to worry! Your big brother will always be there for you!" he grinned.

Hikari smiled. "Yeah..." she said. "Here's your keyblade back." she handed the Kingdom Key back to him.

"Thanks."

Kairi giggled, wiping away the tears from the corner of her eyes. "Watching you two really makes me cry, you know." she sniffled, walking closer to the two brunettes.

"Us too!" Both Donald and Goofy exclaimed.

Sora and Hikari laughed.

"Us too!"

The group froze when they heard another voice. They quickly turned around, finding Yuffie sniffling, Aerith, Leon and Cid behind her.

Leon stepped forward, clearing his throat. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but have you close this world's keyhole?" he asked, crossing his arms.

Yuffie turned to face the scarred man. "C'mon Squall! Let them have their moment! The keyhole can wait for a couple more minutes." the black haired girl huffed, placing her hands on her hips.

Sora and Hikari glanced at each other. "No, Leon's right... We need to close the keyhole now." Sora said, raising his keyblade.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Ah! Hikari!"

Once the group reached the grand hall, they were greeted by the six princesses of hearts and Beast. Belle approached the two brunettes, a worried look across her face.

"We tried our best to keep the darkness at bay, but..." The woman trailed off, glancing over to the keyhole.

"Don't worry! I'll take care of it!" Sora raised his keyblade as he ran up towards the upper floor. He stood in front of the keyhole and pointed his keyblade directly at it. The tip of his keyblade glowed brightly and it shot a ray of light at the Heartless emblem shaped keyhole, locking the world. The brunet sighed in relief before going back to his friends.

"You did well, Sora." Leon said, raising his hand. The two high-fived each other and Sora grinned happily. "It's because of the princesses powers to suppressed the darkness that we made it in time." he said.

Sora nodded his head.

"Sora... I think you better read this." Hikari said, handing him a few paper she got from Aerith. As Sora was was closing the keyhole, Aerith had giving her a few pages of Ansem's reports. At first, she didn't want to read it because it was related to Ansem, but after Aerith insist that she reads it, the brunette finally decided to look at the reports. She waited for her brother to finish reading, watching his expression changed as he finally finished reading the last page.

"So that's why Riku's body was used?!" Sora shouted, his hands gripping on the papers. He turned to look at Aerith, "Where's Ansem now?" he asked, handing the reports back to the woman.

"There's... a growing darkness not far from here... He must be there." Jasmine replied, placing a hand over her heart.

Sora nodded his head. "Alright! Let's go there and kick Ansem's butt!" he said and both Donald and Goofy nodded.

Jasmine turned to face Hikari. "Are you sure you can handle it?" she asked.

Hikari grinned, giving a thumbs up. "Don't worry! We can handle fighting an old man!"

Kairi nodded her head in agreement. "Yeah, when we're together, nothing's impossible, right?" she turned to look at Hikari who smiled in reply.

"Alright, please be careful."

"We will."

Kairi and Hikari quickly followed Sora, Donald and Goofy to the High Tower, catching up with them quickly. Sora, realizing that he was being followed, turned around and his eyes widened when he saw both Kairi and Hikari behind him.

"What are you two doing? You can't come with us!" Sora said.

Kairi and Hikari glanced at each other, frowning. "Why not?"

Sora averted his eyes. "Well... It's too dangerous! I don't want you two getting hurt!" he reasoned.

Hikari snorted. "Says the one who stabs himself." she retorted.

Sora cringed at his sister's reply.

"So we can't come with you?" Kairi asked.

Sora sighed, he scratched the back of his neck. "Well umm... When I got turned to a Heartless you saved me, right? I was lost in the darkness. I couldn't find my way back... But then... I heard your voice. You brought me back." he began, taking a few steps closer to Kairi. "Our hearts are connected. And the light from our hearts broke through the darkness. I saw that light. I think that's what saved me. So even if we're apart, we're not alone." he smiled.

Kairi stared at Sora and she let out a soft sigh. "Alright... You win..." she smiled softly. "I wish I could give you my good luck charm but..." she trailed off, averting her eyes to look at the floor.

"Ah! I have it!" Hikari quickly fished out the Thalassa charm, giving it to Kairi. "A friend found it and gave it to me to give it back to you... So..." she cleared her throat and took a few steps back to stand beside Donald and Goofy.

Kairi giggled staring at the Thalassa charm in her palm. "Right... This is my good luck charm." she took Sora's hand and placed the charm in his hand. "So be sure to bring it back to me, okay?"

Sora laughed. "Okay, promise!"

"Don't ever forget, Sora... Wherever you go, I'm always with you."

Sora couldn't help but blush at Kairi's words. "Y-Yeah... I won't..." he said. He then turned to his sister, who was staring at him with a grin on her face. He pouted and opened his mouth to speak. "Hikari,"

Hikari held out hand, making him stop. "No... I understand. I'll stay here with Kairi. Just... promise that you'll come back, okay?" she stared at her brother with a small smile.

Sora grinned and ruffled Hikari's hair. "Promise!"

"Sibling hug?" Hikari opened her arms, making Sora smile.

"Sibling hug."


	19. Chapter 19

A/N:

Special thanks to everyone who has read, review, faved and followed this story! You guys are awesome!

The final chapter to New Beginnings! It's been really great writing the first part, but it's time to move on to the next! Hooray! Thank you guys so much for reading the first installment of the series! I hope you guys will look forward to the next!

I've decided to give the next sequel's title " _ **Counting Days**_ " or " _ **Forget Me Not**_ "

I don't know... I suck at giving title names... What do you guys think? Any suggestions?

DisneyFreak-Lover: I hope so too!

Guest 1: Haha that's how they are ^^. I face planted to a pole once... It hurts lol. I actually got lost while playing in the waterways haha. Ahh classic video game logic lol. Get away from Hikari, Xehanort! And thank you so much! :D

AllSpark Princess: None taken ^^. We're going to have to find out in the next sequel though...

Lulu9814: awww thank you so much! And bad Xehanort!

Guest 2: awww thank you so much! Not at all, I'm always open to ideas and thoughts. It's a really interesting idea, I'll make sure both Sora and her parents know how she's feeling.

Now with the first installment complete, what do you guys think of this story? Tell me in the review :D

Kingdom Hearts (c) Square Enix

* * *

Chapter 19  
Epilogue

* * *

 _When you walk away_  
 _You don't hear me say,_

* * *

Hikari watched Sora, Donald and Goofy exited the High Tower area. She kept on looking forward, even after the trio were no longer seen. Her smiled soon turned to a small frown as her eyes glanced over to look at the floor. A part of her wanted to come along with them, but she knew that she has to stay behind. She lifted her chin up and look over to her left when she felt a hand on her left shoulder.

Kairi gave a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, he'll come back." she said, clasping her hands behind her.

The brunette laughed a little, turning to face her friend. "I know he will... Just like how he came back to you, right?" she grinned, crossing her hands behind her head. She let out a laugh when she saw Kairi's cheeks growing red in color. The younger girl continued laughing even when Kairi gave a playful push to stop her. "C'mon, Kairi. It was you who brought him back. He heard you . You can't deny that fact." she quoted, remembering every word Sora said to the redhead.

Kairi pouted.

Hikari smiled, her blue eyes staring at Kairi's eyes before she turned around to look at the sky. "You didn't stop believing in Sora, even when he was gone." she said.

The redhead blinked. "Didn't you?" she asked, taking a few steps closer to stand beside the young girl.

Hikari shook her head. "When... I saw Sora stabbed himself and then disappeared right before my eyes... I stopped believing." she raised her hand, staring at her right hand with a frown. She didn't even turn her head to know that Kairi was giving her a worried look. "So when that guy, Ansem, suddenly showed up... I was really mad and just want to hurt that guy badly." she closed her palm, making a fist.

"Hikari..." Kairi began, watching as Hikari closed her eyes.

The brunette turned to face her friend, a smile on her face. "But now... I know that Sora will come back for us, for you." she said.

Kairi couldn't help but smile after seeing the smile on Hikari's face. "Let's go back." she turned around on her heels, walking back towards the grand hall where everybody was at. Hikari grinned and followed after her, jogging to catch up. The two walked side by side, their footsteps echoing in the empty castle. It might be empty, but that doesn't mean Hikari would let her guard down. It was still the base castle of Maleficent. "Don't be so stiff! There's no Heartless around! This is actually the first time I've seen you so stiff." she giggled.

Hikari grinned sheepishly. "Well... This was the bad guys' main base...so..." she trailed off, her eyes glancing around the halls, before she looked at Kairi. "Can't hurt to be a little cautious, right?" she shrugged, holding her rod.

Kairi shook her head. "I guess." she replied.

The two girls continued walking, taking their time to reach the grand hall. It had been awhile since Kairi and Hikari were able to talk. The last time they had talk was before their islands got destroyed by the Heartless. The brunette actually couldn't wait to tell Kairi about her adventures in various of worlds, of course, leaving a few parts about Riku out of her story. Since Kairi was asleep the whole time, she might not be aware of the events that happened around her. She didn't want to tell Kairi of the bad things he did.

"Do... you think it'll ever be the same again between us?" Kairi suddenly said, making Hikari stop walking to stare at her confusedly. The redhead walked a few steps further before turning around as she noticed her friend didn't walk beside her. Her eyes stared into Hikari's blue eyes, showing sadness as thoughts ran in her head. "Riku...got his body possessed by that man, right? And..." she frowned, trailing off as she remembered an image of Riku stopping Ansem.

Hikari stared at the redhead with wide eyes. She never thought that Kairi would say something like that. The brunette suddenly laughed. "C'mon, Kairi! You know the answer to that, right?" she approached the redhead, placing both her hands on Kairi's shoulders. "I think everything will be just the same... If not, better!" she grinned.

Kairi blinked before letting out a giggle. "You're right." she nodded her head in agreement.

The brunette only smiled. _'I hope...'_

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Oh? You didn't go with your boyfriend?" Yuffie sniggered behind her hand, giving a teasing look at the redhead who entered the grand hall. The black-haired teen made her way towards the two girls, standing between them. She slung her arm around Kairi's shoulder, poking her cheek with her finger a few times. "I thought for sure you two would go along with Sora." she said, dragging Kairi away.

Kairi blushed. "We would just get in his way." she cleared her throat and let the black-haired ninja drag her away from her friend.

"Sure..." Yuffie laughed, taking Kairi to the group of Princesses with Beast standing beside one of the beautiful women.

Hikari watched Yuffie drag Kairi away to the group of women and Beast to introduce her. She noticed when Kairi looked over her shoulder, making eye contact with her. She gave her a grin and waved her hand, silently telling her that she would catch up. Kairi nodded and turned her attention back to Yuffie, who kept on talking. The brunette smiled a little, staring at the princesses she made friends with are now okay.

"So you decided to stay behind." A voice stopped her from taking a step forward.

"Leon," Hikari turned her head to the source, nodding her head at the man who came to stood beside her. "Yeah..."

"I didn't think you would actually stay behind." Leon said as he crossed his arms. "Experience wise, I understand why Sora won't let Kairi come along, but you..."

Hikari stared at Leon before averting her gaze. "I didn't either." she admitted, making Leon stare at her with an eyebrow raised. "But now, I have a reason to stay behind." she continued.

"And that is?"

The brunette turned around to look at the other group. "I have someone to protect." the man beside her also turned to look at the Princesses, following the young girl. Her blue eyes wondered from her friends to the redhead in the group as she giggled at what Yuffie had said earlier. Seeing the redhead smile, the brunette's lips turned to a smile as well. "Kairi... is more than a friend to Sora. She's the important person in Sora's life and I promised myself that I would protect Sora and that also means his important person too." she said.

Hikari sighed softly, a small smile on her lips. She held her rod, staring down at it with a determined look. "I will protect Kairi, not just because she's important to Sora, but because she's my friend too." her grasp around her rod tightened a little as she lifted her chin up, a confident look on her face. "A pretty good reason to stay, right?" she grinned, summoning the rod away.

Leon's lips quirked up in a smirk. "No doubt that you're his sister alright." he let out a small laugh, surprising the teen even more when he ruffled her hair. "But I'm sure that you're Sora's important person too. After all, you are his sister." he continued.

Hikari laughed. "Yeah." she said as she combed her hair with her fingers, fixing the damage Leon did to her hair.

"Are you two ready? Cid said the ship is ready to go." the two turned around, facing the woman approaching them.

Hikari tilted her head, a confused look on her face. "What do you mean? Go where exactly?" she asked, glancing back and forth between Leon and Aerith. "We can wait here for Sora, right?"

"We're going back to Traverse Town." The long-haired woman turned to look at the younger girl. She saw how Hikari's expression changed from confused to surprise. She knew what the young girl was thinking. "Hollow Bastion isn't exactly the safest place to wait at the moment." she gave her a gentle smile, hoping that she would understand the current situation.

Hikari looked over her shoulder to the group behind them. "I guess you're right..."

Aerith smiled.

Leon glanced over to the group and then to Hikari. "How good are you now with the Star Shard?" he asked suddenly.

Hikari blinked and gave the man a so-so gesture. "Fifty-fifty... Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't... Why?" she asked, staring at him to continue.

The man crossed his arms over his chest. "Some of the princesses' world didn't fall into the Darkness. Sora locked the world's keyhole before the Heartless could get to it." he explained and he nodded his head when Hikari caught on what he was planning.

Hikari took out her Star Shard, staring at the item in her hand. "So you want me to use the Star Shard to take them back to their own world." she confirmed, looking up at the man who nodded in respond.

Aerith placed a hand on her chin, turning to Leon. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

Leon shrugged. "It'll be faster this way, using the Gummi ship might take a while and Cid will have his hands full. The only person available to take the Princesses back home is Hikari." he said.

"Wait... Then what would you, Aerith and Yuffie be doing?" Hikari stared at the two adults, frowning. They didn't expect her to do all the work, now do they? Sure she wanted to help out the princesses by taking them back to their home, but the adults should do something too, right? "Aren't you guys going to help out too?" she asked.

Aerith nodded her head. "After we restock at Traverse Town, we would be returning to Hollow Bastion to start rebuilding." she answered. Hikari gave her a confused look, crossing her arms as she waited for her to continue. The woman gave Hikari a smile, "Hollow Bastion is still our world. We can't let it be in this state forever." she continued, placing a hand on Hikari's shoulder.

The brunette finally nodded her head in understanding. "Oh..." she trailed off, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly. "I guess I should start too then." she smiled and then turned around, walking to the other group.

"Stay safe."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"What took you so long?" Yuffie asked as Hikari approached them.

Hikari grinned sheepishly. "We were discussing some things." she replied, scratching the back of her neck.

Kairi giggled. "It's...kind of weird seeing you in a discussion. I remembered Tidus would always tell on you at the teacher when you're sleeping on the assignment." she said and Hikari gave a complain and a playful glare.

"Dang it Tidus! He's gonna get a serious whack to the head!" Hikari huffed out, cracking her knuckles.

The redhead giggled even more, making the brunette huff childishly. It really was weird finding out that Hikari was a bit more serious. She could remember perfectly, before their island was taken away from them, Hikari didn't take things seriously and would always take everything as a joke. But now, after seeing Hikari again, she was a bit more serious than before. It really was weird seeing the youngest of the four, grew more in personality in a short span of time.

"Oh! Have you met the other princesses?" Kairi grabbed Hikari's hand and took her closer to the princesses. "This is Cinderella and Aurora." the seventh princess of heart introduced.

Both Aurora and Cinderella did a curtsy and Hikari quickly did the same, bowing her head down to greet the two princesses. "It's very nice to meet you, Princess! I'm Hikari." the brunette introduced.

"Just Cinderella is fine." Cinderella said, smiling.

"Please call me Aurora." the other beautiful blonde woman said.

Hikari nodded her head, returning the smile. It was every little girl's dream to meet a princess and now here she is. Back when she was little, she always wanted to meet a princess and then ask said princess to let her be the knight because she always wanted to try to ride on a big horse and wear a fancy armor. She used to play Princesses and Knights a lot with Sora, Riku, Kairi and Selphie. With sometimes Sora and Riku being the princess.

Kairi giggled at Hikari's awkwardness. "C'mon! This is actually your chance to ask!" she nudged the younger girl, who shuffled her feet nervously. The brunette would always act like this when she meets someone that amazed her. The redhead rolled her eyes. Her eyes landed on the item in Hikari's hand. "Hey, what's that star in your hand?" she asked, changing the subject as she pointed her finger at the item in Hikari's hand.

Hikari quickly snapped out from her thoughts, lifting the Star Shard up for Kairi to look at it better. "This?" she asked.

Yuffie laughed. "I'm actually surprised that it's not reacting now... It reacts at the random place and time..." she frowned, crossing her arms as she thought back to the time when she used the Star Shard once. She wasn't that surprised when the Star Shard took her to another word the moment she touched it, but she was actually more surprised when Merlin decided to let her touch it. "But then again... You've been using it for awhile now. Maybe you got the hang of it already or something." she grinned, placing her hands on her hips.

Hikari shrugged. "Probably."

Jasmine bend down a little, staring at the Star Shard closer. "I remembered this. This was the star that took us away from Maleficent, correct?" she asked, looking at the Star Shard and then to the holder.

The brunette nodded her head. "Yeah. Oh! Which reminds me... I'm actually gonna take you home using the Star Shard. Leon said that it'll save more time than using the Gummi ship." she explained, glancing around to look at the princesses.

Alice walked closer. "Really? Does it really work?" she asked.

"If I know where I'm going, then yes." Hikari answered, giving a reassuring grin and a thumbs up to reassure the princess. She turned to face the blonde princesses she just met, giving them a sheepish look. "But unfortunately... I never been to your world... So we might end up in a few places?" she laughed nervously, hoping that both Cinderella and Aurora would trust her despite the doubt in her own ability.

"Hikari..." Kairi began as she stood beside the brunette who look at her when she heard her name being called.

Cinderella bends down to Hikari's eye-level. "We appreciate your offer to help us return to our own world, but our world has fallen into the darkness." she gave the young girl a small smile, placing her gloved hands on the girl's shoulders. "Long before the keyblade choose Sora." she continued, hoping that the young girl won't blame her brother for not coming sooner to save their world.

Hikari's eyes were wide, staring at Cinderella with a surprised look. "O-Oh... I'm sorry."

Aurora shook her head. "Don't worry, it's not your fault." she smiled. The princess elegantly folded her hands in front of her, the beautiful smile still on her lips. "Don't worry about us. Take Jasmine and Alice back home." she said.

Hikari blinked. "Only Princess Jasmine and Alice? What about Snow White, Belle and Beast?" she turned to face the three person who gave her a sad smile.

Snow White approached the brunette. "I think after I was taken from my world... The Heartless found the keyhole and the world fell to the darkness." she explained, folding her hands.

Belle placed a hand over her heart. "I know I was the last one... But I could feel that our world is no longer in this realm." she said and Beast placed his hand on her shoulder, comforting the woman.

Hikari stared down at the floor. "...this is really depressing..." she mumbled, a sad look across her face.

"It's not your fault." Kairi tried to cheer the brunette up.

Cinderella nodded her head in agreement. "That's right. You have to keep on believing, even in the darkest time. Everything will turn out alright because there is always a way." she lifted Hikari's chin up to look at the girl's eyes. "Believe in your brother. I'm sure that he will find a way for the worlds that had fallen to come back." she smiled.

Hikari laughed. "You sound like Fairy Godmother."

Cinderella laughed too. "Well, she is my Fairy Godmother."

"Oh." Hikari blinked at the information. She turned to look at Jasmine and Alice, giving them a smile. "I guess it's time for me to take you guys back home." she said.

Kairi pouted. "So you're going to leave me too?" she huffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

Hikari cringed, turning to face the redhead. "Don't worry, Kairi! I'll come back really soon! You might not even notice that I'm gone-!" she stopped when Kairi threw herself at the younger girl. The redhead wrapped her arms around the shorter girl, giving a hug. The brunette returned the hug. "I'll come back. Promise." she said and pulled away.

Kairi laughed. "I know. Be careful, 'kay? I heard what that star can do from Yuffie... So yeah, please don't put it near anything sharp, okay?" she joked, her tone turning serious when she advised the younger girl.

The brunette turned to look at Yuffie, giving the black-haired ninja a look.

Yuffie shrugged. "Meh... I carry a giant shuriken all the time." she answered, crossing her arms. "Don't worry, while you're gone, I'll make sure to pass on the message to Cid. The gramps might be old, but he can do a mean damage with his flamethrower." she winked.

Hikari nodded, turning to face Jasmine and Alice.

"Alright then! Let's go!"

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"It is futile, the keyblade alone cannot seal the door to darkness!"

Sora stared at Ansem, holding his keyblade tightly. He was tired out from fighting this man. It hadn't been easy fighting him. The brunette furrowed his eyebrows. No matter how much he beats the guy, he just kept on coming back up! And not in a good way. His blue eyes wondered the the giant white door behind the man.

Ansem turned around, turning his back of the keyblade wielder and his friends. "Kingdom hearts, fill me with the power of darkness!" he shouted, spreading his arms widely.

The giant door slowly opened and black fog were seen coming out from the small gap.

Sora waved his keyblade. "You're wrong!" he shouted. "I know now, without a doubt, Kingdom Hearts is light!"

As if hearing Sora's voice, a bright blinding light slipped through the door, bathing everything in pure white. Sora lifted his arm up, covering his eyes with his arm. He squinted his eyes, staring at the figure in front of him. His eyes widened when the man slowly, but surely began to disappear. He shut his eyes tightly when the light became to bright for him. A few seconds later, the light slowly dies out. He blinked rubbing his eyes as they tried to adjust to the dark again.

Sora glanced over to the door. "C'mon! We have to close the door!" he shouted. As soon as his feet landed on the ground, he sprinted towards the door, Donald and Goofy following behind him. As soon as he reached the door, he placed his hands on the smooth surface and began to push with all his might. "C'mon guys! We can do it!" he grunted out.

Goofy tried to push the door, but even with Donald on his side, the door still won't budge. He tilted his head, looking inside the door. "Garwsh!" he exclaimed in surprise.

"Stop staring and keep pushing!" Donald quacked angrily as he pushed the door with his back. He turned around to look at what Goofy was gawking at and his eyes widened. Inside the door were thousand and thousand of Heartless racing their way towards the door. At the sight, the duck quickly began pushing the door again, this time harder than before. "The Heartless are coming! Hurry!" he shouted.

Sora huffed. "I... can't!" he was losing energy every passing second. A gloved hand suddenly came out from the door, surprising the brunet from his tiredness. The hand gripped on the door, pulling the door back to close it. "What the?" he blinked before he tilted his head to look at the owner of the arm.

Sora's eyes widened when he saw a silver-haired teen beyond the door. "Riku!"

"Don't give up! C'mon Sora, together we can do it!"

Sora nodded his head. "Okay!"

"It's hopeless!" Donald screamed out.

"Don't give up, fellas!" a voice shouted, making both the trio look inside the door. A small figure stood a few meters away from the door, holding a keyblade up. His face couldn't be seen, but both Donald and Goofy know who the mysterious figure is. "Now Sora! Let's close this door for good!" he continued.

"But..." Sora glanced over to Riku, who gave him a smile. "But what about you and Riku?" he asked concernedly.

The King laughed. "Don't worry there's will always be a door to the light."

Goofy glanced over to Sora, giving him a smile. "Sora, you can trust the King."

Sora looked over to Donald and Goofy, who nodded. The brunet nodded before they all gave one last push to close the door.

"Donald... Goofy... Thank you."

Riku turned to face Sora. "Take care of her, okay?" he said with a smile. "And tell Hikari that I'm sorry." he continued.

"I'm sure Hikari would want to hear it from you herself, Riku." Sora grinned, watching as the door completely shuts. He jumped back and raised his keyblade, pointing it directly at the door. A bright light shined from the tip of his keyblade, shooting up to the door's keyhole. The door glowed brightly when he locked it and it disappeared, showing a path behind it. His blue eyes stared at the place where the door had been. "We'll find a way..." he said, glancing up to look at the endless dark sky.

The brunet turned around when he noticed something was out of place. His eyes widened when he saw a familiar redhead at the end of the path. He quickly ran towards her, leaving behind his two friends. Both Donald and Goofy didn't followed the boy, they only look at the boy's back as he continued to run towards the girl.

"Kairi!" Sora shouted, gaining the girl's attention.

Kairi looked up to see Sora running towards her. "Sora!"

Sora grinned, but his grin soon dropped when he noticed that someone was missing. "Where's Hikari? Isn't she with you?" he asked in concern.

Kairi smiled. "She left to return Jasmine and Alice back to their world." she said, giggling when Sora sighed in relief.

"Really... Hikari..." Sora shook his head with a small smile. He took a step back when the ground beneath them shook. He caught Kairi's hand and stopped her from falling forward as the ground between them began to separate. He held her hand tightly even as the gap between then began to grew. "Kairi! Remember what you said before? I'm always with you too! I'll come back to you! I promise!" he tried his best to keep holding her hand.

Kairi nodded her head.

"I know you will!"

Their hands slipped from each other as the distance between them became too long.

* * *

 _"Please, oh baby, don't go."_  
 _Simple and clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight_  
 _It's hard to let it go_

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Jasmine! You're safe!"

"Aladdin!"

Hikari grinned when she watched the two couple reunite, embracing each other in a big hug. Luck was on her side today when the Star Shard took them to the right world. Not once did the Star Shard took her, Alice and Jasmine to an unexpected world. After taking Alice back to Wonderland, she used the Star Shard to go to Agrabah, the last stop before going back to Traverse Town.

Aladdin and Jasmine pulled away from each other before walking closer to the brunette, who straightened up at the sight of the couple coming closer.

"Thank you so much for bringing Jasmine back. I don't know what I would do if she's not here with me..." the young man said, scratching the back of his neck.

Hikari laughed. "Don't sweat it!"

"You deserved a reward!" a disembodied voice shouted happily. Hikari glanced around, looking for the person, but when her eyes look over to Jasmine and Aladdin, all they gave her was a smile. The brunette blinked confusedly before something or rather someone appeared beside her in a puff of blue smoke. She coughed and fanned her hand in front of her face, fanning the smoke away from her face. She saw a blur of blue before her clothes glowed brightly. "The person who saved the princess deserves a reward!" the voice continued.

"Whoa!" Hikari glanced down at her clothes and she was magically dressed in an all-white fancy clothes with a long elegant red cape behind her. She glanced around to look at the person who did this to her, but she quickly looked down when something heavy was put around her neck. A gold medal was placed around her neck, she lifted the gold medal up to read the writings on it. "To the Hero who saved the Princess. Congratulation... This is the weirdest medal ever..." she blinked as she stared at the picture in the middle.

"Who are you calling weird?" The picture on the medal spoke. Hikari's eyes widened in surprise when the medal suddenly spoke. The picture moved to crossed his arms and before she could even blink, the medal disappeared in a puff of smoke and a blue man was standing in front of her. "Well, talk about being rude." he huffed, crossing his arms.

"What?" Hikari blinked a few times.

Aladdin laughed. "Hikari, this is Genie. Genie, this is Hikari." he introduced, directing his hand from Hikari to Genie and vice versa.

"Wait so this isn't Sora?" Genie blinked before he snapped his fingers and a pair of glasses appeared. He squinted his eyes and he suddenly grinned widely. "You're right! The hair's really different... Nice to meet you!" he said as he shook Hikari's hand up and down.

"A genie! Wow!" Hikari gawked as Genie kept on shaking her hands. "But um... Do you mind zapping my clothes back? It's really heavy and hot wearing these." she gestured to her whole outfit.

"One normal outfit, coming up!" Genie pointed his finger at Hikari and with a zap, her clothes went back to normal.

"Thanks." The brunette thanked as her eyes stared at the blue genie.

Jasmine giggled. "So what are you going to do now?" she asked.

"Go back to Traverse Town to meet up with Kairi and wait for Sora, I guess." Hikari shrugged her shoulder, turning around to look at Jasmine. She took out her Star Shard and tossed the shard up and down. She tossed the shard one last time before catching it and raising it up closer to her face. "There's nothing more that I can do until Sora defeated that guy and come back to us." she admitted.

The black-haired woman's smiled turned to a small frown. "What about your other friend Riku?" she asked.

Hikari stopped for a moment. "I...actually don't know." she sighed out, staring down at the Star Shard in her hand. "This was actually his fault... If he didn't listen to Maleficent in the first place, none of this would've happened..." she continued, her hold around the Star Shard tightening.

Aladdin blinked. "But at least Maleficent is defeated, right? He can't listen to the evil woman again. He might feel regret over the things he did and decide to make things better for you and Sora." he said, giving an encouraging smile.

The brunette nodded. "I don't know how I should feel about him now, but maybe I'll know when I see him again." she said, giving a small smile at them.

Jasmine nodded. "Come back and visit us, okay?"

"A friend of Al is a friend of mine! Come back and visit us any time!" Genie patted Hikari's back once before disappeared in a cloud o blue smoke and then reappearing in front of Hikari to shake her hands up and down.

"I will!" Hikari laughed. "I'll see you guys later!"

Aladdin grinned. "Thank you again."

"No problem."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"What's...going on?"

Hikari glanced around when she reached Traverse Town's first district. The moment she arrived in the world, she knew that something was wrong. Nothing seemed to changed in appearance, but everything was so quiet, even if Traverse Town was already a quiet place to begin with. The brunette took a few steps forward, looking around as she tried to find any signs of life in the district. She looked over to her left and then to the right, to the spot where that floating big nosed creature would always be seen.

"Where is everybody..." Hikari asked aloud.

"They went back to their own world." A voice surprised her. She quickly turned around and found a familiar blond man walking down the set of stairs towards her along with another spiky haired blond walking behind him. "I was beginning to think that you went back to your world too." he said.

"Gramps! Cloud!" Hikari shouted as she ran towards them, meeting in the middle. "What do you mean by that? What really happened? And where's Kairi? Is she, okay? Why isn't she with you?" she bombarded the blond man with questions. "And what are you doing here?" she asked the spiky blond.

Cloud turned his head away.

Cid grimaced, gritting his teeth before he flicked the girl's forehead. "You kids really don't have any respect for people older than you, huh?" he sighed, shaking his head as Hikari rubbed the spot on her forehead. Hikari glared at him for flicking her forehead, but her glare disappeared when he began to explain. "I picked him up on my way here. It's actually a surprise to find him." he said, jabbing his thumb at the blond next to him.

Hikari blinked. "It's actually a surprise that we're able to meet each other again..." she trailed off, crossing her arms.

Cloud nodded his head in agreement. "Same here."

The brunette turned to the older blond. "So about my other questions..."

Cid shrugged. "It's exactly what I said... Everyone went back to their own world. I guess your brother did it." he said, scratching the back of his neck.

Hikari's eyes brightened. "Sora did it?! He defeated Ansem?! That's great!" she shouted excitedly. She was delighted to hear that her brother won and had saved everyone's worlds by doing so. She couldn't be more happy to have a brother like Sora. Her thoughts then wondered to Kairi. If she wasn't in Traverse Town, that means she went back to their home island. At that thought, her bright look was replaced with a frown.

Cid noticed the change in expression. "What's with the frown? I thought you were happy that Sora won?" he asked, moving the toothpick in his mouth with his teeth.

"I know... but..." Hikari trailed off, staring at the ground. She raised her hand up, placing her right hand on her heart. "If everyone else and Kairi went back to their world... Then shouldn't I go back too?" she asked, lifting her chin up to look at Cid and Cloud.

Cid and Cloud glanced at each other. "Maybe it's because you were world hoping with that Star Shard..." Cloud said.

Cid sighed. "I actually don't know kid..." he admitted, crossing his arms over his chest. "But you can go back to your home world now, right?" he grinned, ruffling the young girl's hair.

Hikari laughed, shoving his arm away from her hair. "You're right."

"Hikari! Hikari!" Two different squeaky voices called out to her. Cid, Cloud and Hikari turned around to the source. It was the chipmunks, Chip and Dale. The brunette kneeled down and hold out her hand for the two chipmunks to climb on. She stood back up, staring at the chipmunks with a worried and confused look.

"What's wrong?" Hikari asked. "Where's Sora, Donald and Goofy?"

Chip and Dale glanced at each other. "That's what we want to talk about." Dale said as he took a step forward. Chip followed his steps."You see... Sora, Donald and Goofy haven't shown up from the last world we dropped them off." the black-nosed chipmunk said slowly, afraid that the girl won't take the news well.

Hikari's eyes widened. "Then why didn't you two just wait for them?" she asked, staring at the two chipmunks as her thoughts began to fill up with negative thoughts.

"Hikari... The world disappeared. We can't find Sora, Donald or Goofy anywhere..."

The brunette's heart seemed to stop beating when she heard the news.

"Are you serious?" Cid asked as he leaned down to look at the chipmunks.

Both Chip and Dale nodded before their placed their tiny hands on Hikari's thumb.

"I'm going after them!" Hikari shouted in denial. She gave the two chipmunks to Cid and took out her Star Shard. Just when she was about to raise the Star Shard up, a hand grabbed her wrist, stopping her from using the shard. "Let me go! I need to find them!" she shouted at the spiky blond.

Cloud stared at the brunette. "Do you know where exactly you have to go?" he questioned. The young girl looked away, a scowl on her lips. He released the girl's wrist and continued to stare her down. "My thoughts exactly. You would just be going around into random worlds without knowing which one they're in." he said.

"But I have to at least try!" Hikari shouted back. "He promised to come back. I just got Sora back, I can't lose him again..." she trailed off, looking down.

"Your brother is the type to keep his promises... Go back to your world and he'll come back someday." Cloud said, staring at the brunette.

Hikari shook her head. "I'm not going home without Sora." she said stubbornly.

Cloud sighed.

"Kids..." Cid shook his head. "Well then... We should meet up with Leon and the others." he said.

Chip and Dale nodded. "We're going back to Disney Palace, maybe Queen Minnie can help you."

Cid turned to the young girl. "After meeting their queen, come and meet us at Hollow Bastion's Library, alright?"

The brunette nodded her head. "Sounds like a plan."

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Despite all of the sad feelings inside of her heart, Hikari can't help but gawk at the sight of the white castle's majestic halls. It was big and grand, and so bright, much different than Hollow Bastion's castle. The brunette continued to follow Chip and Dale's instruction as they guided her through the halls. The brunette stopped when she saw two people walking away from her, their backs facing her.

"Queen Minnie!" Both Chip and Dale shouted.

Hikari kneeled down to let Chip and Dale down from her shoulder, letting them run towards their queen. Hikari soon followed after the chipmunks in a slower pace. When the chipmunks said that the queen's full name is Minnie Mouse, she just thought that was only a funny surname, but she never expected the queen to actually be a mouse. Then again, Donald, Goofy, Chip and Dale are animals too, so she should have expected it.

"I see... So Sora, Donald and Goofy haven't returned from the previous world..." Minnie said, a worried look across her features.

Daisy huffed as she crossed her arms. "That Donald! When I get my hands on him I'll make sure he'll never break any more promises again!" she frowned. Her eyes glanced over to the newcomer walking towards them. "Oh! We have a guest, your majesty." she said, turning to look at the girl.

Minnie turned to look at the girl, staring at the brunette's face before she smiled. "I'm Minnie. What's your name, my dear?"

Hikari bowed. "I'm Hikari. Sora's sister, your majesty." she said in respect.

"There's no need for you to be so formal, just call me Minnie and this is Daisy." Minnie introduced and both Hikari and Daisy bowed their head in greeting. The queen approached Hikari and the brunette bends down, standing on her knees. "I'm very sorry, to hear about your brother, Hikari..." the queen apologized.

Hikari shook her head. "It's not your fault, Queen Minnie. I'm going to keep on looking for Sora, Donald and Goofy." she smiled. "I'm sure I'll find them soon if I keep on believing, right?" she said, despite not being able to believe that she will find them anytime soon.

Minnie nodded her head, giggling. "You're right."

Hikari smiled and took something out from her pouch. "I guess this belongs to your King..." she said, showing the queen the Star Shard. She handed the Star Shard to the queen's hands. "Sorry if it's a little scratched up..." she apologized.

Minnie shook her head. "You're going to need it if you're going to look for you brother and your friends, my dear." she smiled, placing the Star Shard back into Hikari's hands. "I'm sure Mickey wouldn't mind." she continued.

The brunette stared at the Star Shard before nodding her head.

"Thank you."

* * *

 _Hold me_  
 _Whatever lies beyond this morning_  
 _Is a little later on_

* * *

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Welcome back, kid."

Hikari smiled at the blond man as she entered the library.

Yuffie blinked. "What? You didn't return to your own world? I thought everyone was supposed to go back?" she approached the younger girl, leaning closer to the girl's face.

"I don't want to go back without Sora. I know that I promised Kairi that I would come back with her, but not without Sora. It's just doesn't feel the same going back home without your brother..." Hikari said, looking down to stare at her hand. She lifted her head up and turned to face Yuffie before looking at everyone in the room. "So I hope you guys don't mind me sticking around for awhile." she flashed them a grin.

Aerith smiled. "Not at all. We need all the help we can get."

Yuffie nodded her head in agreement. "After all, the more people helping, the faster we can restore Hollow Bastion! We can help each other out!" she pumped her fist up in the air. She wrapped her arm around the brunette's shoulder, giving a hug. The black-haired girl turned to face the scarred man and the two blonds. "Isn't that right Squall? Cloudy? Gramps? What do you guys think?" she grinned.

Cloud only turned his head away. "Don't call me Cloudy."

"I think we can babysit and have some respect will 'ya, you little brats!" Cid huffed.

Leon closed his eyes, a small smirk on his lips. He opened his eyes and walked towards Yuffie and Hikari with his arms crossed. He uncrossed his arms and held his right hand out.

Hikari stared at his hand and glanced over to Yuffie who nodded and grinned. The brunette looked up at Leon and smiled before taking his hand, giving a shake.

"Welcome to the Hollow Bastion Restoration Committee."

* * *

 _Regardless of warnings the future doesn't scare me at all_  
 _Nothing's like before_


End file.
